Dexter Season 8: The Beginning of the End
by KS4EVA
Summary: The immediate aftermath of season 7. How does Dexter react after the chain of events that began before the clock struck midnight on New Years? Rated M for Deb's language and mature situations referenced. Episode 4 is now up!
1. Auld Lang Syne

**A/N: Please excuse any part of this fictitious piece that may seem far fetched or hard to believe in the world of the hit show, Dexter. This is my first crack of writing fiction for this fandom. To my loyal readers who have been reading my fic, Back To Good, I haven't forgotten about that project, I simply got inspired to try my hand at Dexter. I have no intention to abandon "Back To Good", I've just been very busy with graduate school. I suddenly got the urge to write my version of Dexter season 8 premiere so I went with it. **

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**All characters in this fic are property of Showtime. Reviews are very welcomed. This story contains spoilers from the Dexter season 7 finale.  
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**Season 8, Episode 1: Auld Lang Syne**

_"New year: A time-honored tradition of celebrating the end of a calendar year, and the beginning of another."_

Dexter Morgan's brown eyes shifted to his rear view mirror. He took note of Harrison who was sleeping soundly in his car seat as well as the multicolor clusters of fireworks that was still visible over the dark Miami skyline over Batista's restaurant. He then glanced over to Debra who was sitting in his passenger seat staring blankly out the window.

_"For most people, a new year as a chance to start over; a clean slate with all the sins and vices of the past year being forgiven and forgotten after the clock strikes 12. If only it was that easy for Deb."_

Dex was worried about his sister. She had gone from one extreme to the other; sobbing uncontrollably with Laguerta's lifeless body in her arms to emotionally vacant while she witnessed her brother carry out his plan to erase what she had done. With a firm grasp of her brother's forearm, Deb had allowed him to lead her through the sea of party goers toward Papa's Cafe. She was on autopilot; her mind trying to rationalize or make excuses for what she had done.

Dexter had thought it best that Debra stayed with him and Harrison at the apartment. The last thing she needed right now was to be alone at her place with only her raw recollection of shooting Maria to keep her company. That was a burden that he knew full well that she would not be able to handle right now.

"It's going to be okay, Deb." He breathed in a tone of voice that didn't sound all that comforting as he stayed focus on the drive back to his apartment.

There was few moments of awkward silence before Debra finally shattered it with her strangled voice that sounded like she was on the verge of hysteria:

"How the fuck is it every going to be okay, Dex? I'm the fucking Lieutenant of Homicide and I murd-"

She stopped herself mid-sentence covering her mouth with her casted left hand. The tears began to flow again as she did her best to stifle a sob. Deb couldn't even bring herself to say it aloud. She had murdered Maria Laguerta on New Year's Eve in a shipping container. No amount of Xanax was going to help her forget that.

"You did what you had to do. I promise you that this is not going to come back on us. I'll take care of everything."

It was Dexter's second attempt at trying to be supportive of his sister. He was trying his best to give her the most optimistic view of the situation by assuring her that because of his forensic expertise, she would never have to answer for her actions. After all, Harry's number one rule of the code was not to get caught. They would get through this, just like they had always gotten through everything else.

When his words did nothing to sooth her, he made an attempt to reach over with his right hand to place it on her shoulder. She swatted it away.

"Don't! Just don't, Dexter! Stay the fuck away! I'm done, just leave me alone!"

Harrison let out a small whine from the backseat, stirring in his slumber because of his aunt Deb's outburst. Dexter exhaled through his gaped mouth. He brought his right hand back to his Ford Escape's steering wheel.

_"Stay away. Those were the same words that had come out of Harry's mouth when he came face to face with my urge to kill. The idea of the code and the spirit of it was one thing, but actually witnessing my work was too much for him. Like my father, my sister can't accept the real me nor the darkness to which I pulled her into when she entered that shipping container and had to pull the trigger."_

Dexter's eyes glanced up to his rearview and he saw his father seated in the backseat next to his sleeping son.

_Harry: "You can't blame Debra for acting this way. What she did for you tonight shook her to the very core of her being. Your sister isn't like you, Dexter. Why do you think I instilled in you the need to keep what you are a secret from her and everyone else you care about? To keep something like this from happening. This will destroy Debra if you aren't there for her."_

_"I'm here for her. I've always put Deb first. Hannah was the one person in the world I didn't have to hide anything from and I sent to her to prison because she tried to hurt Deb. Spare me the lecture, Dad."_

The imaginary dialogue with his foster father came to a halt the moment Dexter pulled his Ford Escape into its usual parking space at his apartment complex. Before he could kill the engine, Debra sprung out from the passenger door, slamming it before walking toward the bay.

He thought about going after her for a moment, but quickly decided against it. He was willing to give her space. Perhaps a few quiet minutes alone by the water would help calm her down. Meanwhile, he needed to get Harrison to bed.

With his sleeping child in his arms, he climbed the stairs to the second floor and walked toward apartment 10B. What he saw at his doorstep made him stop dead in his tracks. His eyes widened while studying the plant.

_"A black orchid."_

"Hannah..." Dexter breathed in a hushed whisper.

Dexter slowly bent down and picked up the plant with his free hand. It was small. The same kind of plant she picked out for him at the beginning of their relationship, only dark. A darker version of Hannah, perhaps?

_"Hannah's out. This plant was her way of letting me know."_

Shuffling into the dark apartment, he sat the plant down on the kitchen counter top before shifting his son to his other arm. Harry appeared standing in the kitchen the moment Dexter flicked on a light.

_Harry: "A black flowered plant being left on your doorstep doesn't seem like a loving sentiment, Dex; It's more like a warning about what she's capable of, like that cut on your lip."_

Dexter moved his tongue over the scab on his lip that was courtesy of his love. A passionate goodbye kiss that without warning turned into a bitter bite that was fueled with contempt. A response to his Judas kiss in her garden before he turned her over to Miami Metro.

_"I already know what she's capable of. I've known all along, but that didn't stop me from falling for her. Even after what she did to Deb, I can't bring myself to hate Hannah."_

Dex gently ran a fingertip over one of the black pedals of the plant. So soft and beautiful, just like her.

_"I'm still in love with her."_

_Harry: "That may be so, Dexter, but it doesn't change the fact that she tried to kill your sister. You know you could never have a future with Hannah. You should just get rid of that plant."_

_"I'm not going to get rid of it, but I can't let Deb see it. She'll know right away who it was from, and she's going to find out soon enough that Hannah escaped."_

The sound of the apartment door opening made Dexter spring into action as he quickly scooped the plant back up and moved it into his nearby bedroom and set it down next to his small TV on the dresser. He then spun back around to face his sister who shot him an icy stare with her puffy and tear stained face.

"Thanks for fucking caring enough to check on me, big brother." She scoffed sarcastically folding her arms in front of her.

"I thought you wanted some space." He admitted with a look of confusion as he watched his sister enter his kitchen area.

"Please tell me you have beer. If there was ever a time I needed to get shitfaced, it's now." muttered Debra swinging the refrigerator door open.

"Yeah, there should be some in there. I'm just going to put Harrison to bed, Jamie mentioned that she was saying with a friend tonight so feel free to sleep on her side of the apartment."

"I don't know if I'll ever be able to sleep again after what happened tonight." She answered back in a strained voice. She was fighting the tears back yet again.

Dexter paused for a minute and contemplated how he should respond to her. He didn't know, and the last time he reached out she told him to stay away. That's what he needed to do.

After putting Harrison to bed, Dexter left Debra drowning her sorrows with her favorite alcoholic beverage while he adjourned to his bedroom for the night. Unlike Deb, sleep had no trouble finding Mr. Morgan.

* * *

"Hannah fucking McKay escaped!"

Deb's incensed voice pierced through Dexter's quiet morning routine of getting ready for work. Dex was always an early riser; it wasn't even half past six.

_"Good morning to you too, Deb."_

He was buttoning one of his striped collared shirts when his eyes shifted to his bedroom doorway where his sister was standing. She looked tired. Dark circles had replaced the smeared black mascara under her eyes.

"Wow, really? When?" He asked back doing his best to seem completely surprised by the news.

"Yesterday, that sneaky bitch faked a seizure on the transport bus and then escaped custody at the hospital! Do you believe that I'm just finding out about this?"

"Well it is New Years Day which most people take off, and Miami Metro does have a lot on its plate with the Laguerta situation."

Dex mentioning Maria caused Debra to fold her arms and look away from his gaze. The murder she had committed last night was still lingering in the back of her mind and it probably would never go away. Her brown eyes fell upon the black orchid sitting on top of her brother's dresser.

"How many of those fucking plants did Hannah bring over here? They're probably giving us Anthrax or some other poisonous shit. You should get rid of these plants, Dex." She commented with venom in her voice while looking on at the plant with disgust.

He breathed a small sigh of relief that Deb had drawn no connection between Hannah's prison break and the new orchid in the apartment. At least she didn't know about his jilted lover reaching out to him after her escape.

"Jamie should be here any minute then I'll take you to pick up your car so you can go home and change before work." He told her, moving the topic of conversation away from Hannah.

"Today is going to suck so much ass. Not only do I have the worst fucking hangover of my life, but I'm going to have to show my face at the station and pretend that nothing happened. I don't think I can do it, Dex." Deb whined while slowly shaking her head as a few tears escaped her eyes.

"It's important that the Lieutenant of Homicide is at the station in the wake of the Captain's death. It would be suspicious if you didn't show up at work today. You'll be fine, Deb. Just stay calm and stick to the plan."

"And you get the day off?"

"No, I'm just going in late. I have to go over to Laguerta's and dispose of all the evidence that could implicate us with her death. Remember, we're sticking with my original plan of making Captain Maria Laguerta look like obsessed and bitter former lover of Sergeant Doakes."

"Jesus fucking Christ, Dex."

Once Jamie arrived, Dexter and Debra set out. The ride to drop Deb off at her car was silent. Her head was pounding and the glare of the Florida sun didn't help. Thankfully, she had left her sunglasses were in her car so she wouldn't be that long without them.

"I'll see you later at the station." muttered Dex as he watched his sister get out of the car.

She slammed the passenger door shut, not bothering to acknowledge him. Dexter sat there for a moment to make sure that his sister was able to get into her automobile before he put his Escape into drive and pulled away.

_" I know that the right thing for me to do would be to go straight to Laguerta's and take care of the evidence then get to the station. It's the logical thing to do since our asses would be on the line if anyone found that evidence, but I can't help being called elsewhere. The fact that Hannah left one of her orchids for me meant that she had been back to her nursery. She could have left something else for me to find."_

He made his way to 4065 S. Begonia Street. The SUV came to a stop on the street beside the white picket fence. Dexter sat there for a few moments, his eyes focused in on the brightly colored "Hannah-Flora Nursery" sign.

Dex thought back to his first encounter with Hannah McKay; keeping things on a last name basis after a botched first attempt at a DNA swapping. Never before had Dexter had such an innate connection with someone, until he met Hannah. And yet he betrayed his lover for his sister's safety. Dexter had thrown away his happiness, because he always had to put Deb first.

Both the house and the nursery were locked up tight, and there was no sign of Hannah having been there. As Dex slowly made his way back to his Ford Escape, Harry appeared leaning against it waiting for him.

_Harry: "Let her go, Dexter. This was obviously a dead end. Hannah's smart, she probably fled right after dropping that plant off at your doorstep. You need to wrap up things for you and your sister."_

_"No, she's not gone, I feel like she's still nearby."_

_Harry: "You feel?"_

_" Arlene Shram is the only person who Hannah would trust to help her while she's on the run. Maybe she knows where she is. I'll look up her address and pay her a visit after I take care of the evidence."_

_Harry: "What makes you think Arlene will even talk to you? If she is helping Hannah escape, I'm sure Hannah filled her in on how you were responsible for her landing in jail."_

_"I still have to try and talk to her. Hannah's out there somewhere and I need to find her. But first, I need to take care of the evidence."_

Slipping into Captain Laguerta's house was just as easy as before. It was a good thing that it was a holiday, because any other ordinary day, Miami Metro would already be on the scene combing the place over for any evidence that could be linked to Maria's death.

With his white gloves already on, Dexter collected the warrants from Laguerta's desk that still remained unsigned. The disk that contained the footage of Debra filling up gas cans for the church burning was still inside her laptop. And of course, Dexter Morgan found duplicates of the footage as well as all the rest of her research on the hard drive of her computer. A few clicks and all the digital evidence was gone.

He hadn't finished a moment too soon, because just before he was going to slip out of the house, Dex saw a number of black SUVs pull into the driveway.

_"Miami Metro isn't on the case, it's the F.B.I."_

With no time to waste, Dexter exited via the back of the house. That was much too close of a call. If he had waited any longer to arrive and dispose of the evidence, he could have been caught.

_Harry: "I hope you were thorough in there with collecting all the possible evidence that linked you and Debra to the crime."_

_"I took care of it. There isn't anything that could lead them to me or Deb. Give me some credit, would you?"_

_Harry: "I just know that you have a lot on your mind. Ever since Hannah McKay entered you life, you haven't been at the top of your game. You're preoccupied with her, and it's making you make mistakes that the old Dexter would never have made."_

_"Maybe it's because I'm not the same person I was before Hannah."_

* * *

Detective Joey Quinn sat quietly at his desk. His thumbs moved across his phone screen as he texted Jamie how much he had enjoyed her company the night before. The sound of Angel sniffing back congestion caused him to look away from his phone and over at his partner. Joey placed his phone face down and decided he should say something to his mourning co-worker.

Detective Sergeant Batista was sitting hunched over at his desk with the Hector Estrada case file in front of him. He was taking the news of Captain Laguerta's death especially hard given the fact that he was once married to her.

"Angel, you know that no one would blame you for taking today off. I'm just saying." Quinn pointed out as he approached his colleague's desk.

"I just can't believe Maria is gone. It just doesn't make any sense why she would have been meeting Estrada in a shipping container out at the port." Batista whispered softly closing the case file.

"Who knows why, but you do have to admit that Captain Laguerta had been obsessed about the whole "Bay Harbor Butcher still being out there and is Dexter Morgan" theory. She could have thought Estrada was connected to the case somehow. I guess we will never know since the F.B.I. is quietly handling the case. The word is that they think it's pretty open and shut."

Angel shook his head and looked around at the empty station. There were only a handful of cops in the Homicide division who showed up for work on New Year's day, despite the fact that their Captain had been killed. It was similar to the death of James Doakes. Everyone was happy to put it behind them and let the F.B.I. handle it. Sure Maria was not always well liked, she deserved more respect than this.

"One of Miami Metro, one of ours, was murdered last night and it's the F.B.I. who is given the investigation? ¡Esto es una mierda!"

"Maybe it's because all of us in Miami Metro Homicide were too close to Laguerta. You have to be able to be objective when it comes to a murder investigation." Quinn reasoned in a calm voice.

"Something about what happened to Maria just doesn't feel right to me to me." Batista insisted, his eyes then immediately focusing on the elevator door opening.

Debra stepped out of the elevator with a cup of coffee in hand and her glasses still shielding her eyes. A shower and change of clothes had done little to improve her affect. She still felt like the dirty cop who was hiding behind "a big shinny badge". Those were Hannah's words to her, not hers, but they were beginning to resonate with her.

"Fuck me." She breathed under her breath when she saw Angel looking right at her from across the station.

She had hoped that he would have taken the day off to grieve over his ex-wife so that she wouldn't have to face him.

"Hey Deb, I'm glad I could count on you coming in today." Angel told her as she moved toward him and Joey on her way to her office.

"I am the Lieutenant." She muttered, her voice trembling as she looked at the man who had always been like a second older brother to her since she had started her career.

Before she could walk on to her office to get herself out of the awkward situation, the Sergeant rose from his desk and pulled her into his arms for a hug. The fact that he was hugging the person who had murdered his former wife was all it took for Debra to lose her composure.

"I'm so sorry, Angel." She sobbed, hugging him back with one arm, her coffee still in the other.

Her mascara was already beginning to run in black streams from under her sun glasses. Deb's words could not have been more genuine. Shooting Maria was the hardest thing she ever had to do. She had snuffed out the life of another cop to protect herself and her brother. Lieutenant Debra Morgan was a cop killer. God, if her father knew what she did; that thought was too much for her to take.

"Thanks, Deb. We'll all get through this." He whispered to her.

"I-I'll be in my office." muttered Debra after she broke the hug and immediately began to walk at a fast paced toward the sanctuary of her office.

Once alone with the door shut, she closed the blinds, cutting herself off from the rest of the station. Not bothering to turn a light on, she took a seat at her desk were she placed her beverage. Deb removed her sunglasses and set them down in front of her next to the newest photo of her, Dexter, Harrison, and Santa Clause.

Seeing the picture reminded her why she chose to do what she did last night. Dexter and Harrison were the only family she had left since both Harry and Doris Morgan were dead. She didn't want to lose them. It was the only defense she had to explain her actions, yet it didn't make the reality of the situation any easier to cope with.

Debra found her Xanax prescription in the top right draw. Popping open the cap, Deb spilled two pills into the palm of her casted hand. She then tossed the medicine into her mouth and chased it with a sip of coffee. Lieutenant Morgan needed those pills just as much as she needed the caffeinated beverage.

Deb had to take her mind off of Laguerta and focus on finding Hannah McKay. As Lieutenant, she could make finding Hannah her department's top priority. Surely Dexter would be on board since he had given her Sal Price's pen; without that evidence, she wouldn't have been able to make the arrest.

"Shit." muttered Deb aloud to herself.

Debra's eyelids began to feel heavy. The lack of sleep from the night before was catching up with her. She succumbed to her drowsiness and laid her head down on the desk. The search for Hannah was going to have to wait.

* * *

"Dude, I thought you were taking new year's day off." Masuka commented the minute he looked up from his forensic station and saw Dexter walking toward his lab.

"I forgot that I had a few blood reports that I was suppose to submit before the new year. Why are you in today? " He answered back without missing a beat.

"I'm dedicated to Miami Metro forensics...Besides, I struck out big time with my date last night. She got all freaked out when I put on an adult diaper, told I was baby new year, and I wanted to suck her big titties. Huhuhuhuh."

"Too much info, Vince." replied Dexter as he entered his lab and quickly shut the door.

_"Arlene Shram's address shouldn't be hard to find in the Miami Metro database. Hannah had mentioned her having quite the record of drug charges."_

Dex typed her name into the database and hit 'search'. Her information, including her current address, quickly popped up on the screen. He jotted down the address on a nearby pad of paper before making his exit.

It was about a twenty minute drive to Hialeah, which was where Arlene lived. The front walkway leading to the home was littered with children's toys and Dex could hear the sound of kids playing from inside the home before he even rang the bell. When he did make his presence known, the red head opened the chain locked door just enough so that she could peer out at him.

"Who are you?" Arlene asked inquisitively.

"Dexter Morgan, I'm Hannah's-"

"Oh, you, Hannah mentioned you. What do you want?"

It was then that Dexter realized that Hannah had not only told her friend that he was her lover, but also that he had betrayed her and landed her in jail. Judging by Arlene's demeanor, it was doubtful that she would be of any help to him.

"I just want to find Hannah." He answered back truthfully before he could even consider being more tactful and deceitful.

"Why, so you can have your cop sister throw her in jail again?"

"No, I'm worried about her. Have you seen her or has she tried to contact you at all?"

"I don't know anything. The last thing I would ever do is risk going to jail and losing my kids taken away. So you can tell that skanky detective that I haven't seen Hannah since her arraignment."

Dex sighed and shook his head. Debra had clearly threatened the woman with jail time for cooperation. He had to convince her that he and Deb were on two completely different sides when it came to Hannah.

"Look, I love Hannah. She left a plant on my apartment doorstep. I think she wants me to find her, where ever she is."

Arlene looked off to the side. She was contemplating whether or not she should buy into Mr. Morgan's seemingly heartfelt expression of love. She and Hannah had looked out for each other as young teenagers, so of course she was cautious about trusting him.

"Please, Arlene. I need to find her. If the police find her before I do then they'll send her off to a super maximum security prison for the rest of her life." Dexter pleaded. His voice sounded strained as he actually found himself fighting back tears. The thought of never seeing Hannah again was overwhelming him.

She let out a long sigh and then bit her lip to show her indecisiveness. Dexter did give some valid reasons for trying to locate her friend. The last time Hannah had gone on the run with Wayne, she hadn't gotten far at all before getting caught.

"Wait here, I'll be back." She finally told him before closing the door.

He stood there on the front porch for a solid four minutes before the front door opened again, this time completely. With a fresh cigarette in her mouth, Arlene handed Dexter a small torn off piece of paper.

"She called my cell from that number this morning from that number. I tried calling it back since, but no one picks up. She asked me if I knew of anyone who could score her a fake passport and drivers license." Ms. Shram explained before taking a drag from her cigarette.

"Thanks, I appreciate this." Dex said holding the small piece of paper up.

"If you do get in contact with her, tell her to be careful out there. A girl's gotta look after herself."

Dexter nodded and flashed a small smile after hearing Arlene echo Hannah's words. Thanks to Shram, he had his first piece of real evidence to go on. Harry appeared sitting in Dexter's passenger seat the moment Dexter got back into his SUV.

_Harry: "Not much of a lead, Dex. Hannah probably borrowed a random stranger's cell phone or used a payphone for a quick call before taking a flight out of Florida. Arlene mentioned that she couldn't even get her by calling the number."_

_"No, Hannah's lying low. Arlene also mentioned that Hannah had asked her about finding someone who could get her a fake passport and ID. She can't hop a flight without any identification. No, she's still here in Florida somewhere, I know it. I can run the number in the database and see what bounces back."_

Dexter drove home instead of going back to the station. He could easily do a trace on the phone number from his laptop. Upon entering the apartment, he found Harrison playing on the living room floor with his train set while Jamie walked around collecting clothing into a laundry basket.

"Hey Dex, you're home early. I was going to take Harrison to the park in a little bit, if you want to join us." Jamie offered.

"I'd love to, but I only stopped home for some files I need for a case."

Harrison was all smiles to see his daddy home from work early. His little eyes followed his father to the desk where Dex sat down to use his laptop. Jamie left living room to start a wash of clothes.

With the slip of paper in hand, Dex brought up the internet which defaulted to the Netrangler web search. He was going to start with the simplest search method and go from there. He began typing the number into the search bar when his son approached him.

"Hey buddy, you having fun playing with your trains? What do you have there?" Dex asked with a smile when he saw that Harrison had come over to him with a picture frame in his hand. He lifted three year old into his lap.

"Daddy and Hannah." The child replied, revealing the silver framed picture to his father.

It was the same picture that Hannah had given Dexter on Christmas Eve. Dex sighed, focusing his eyes on the framed photograph. He looked so happy in it; the happy times with his lover before everything went to shit. This was the second time Harrison had brought up Hannah in the last two days.

"You miss Hannah?" He asked his son.

The three year old nodded before he brought the photo up to his chest and hugged it. The few times Dexter had brought his child around his girlfriend had obviously made an impression.

"Daddy misses her too. Let's see if we can find her." Dex whispered into Harrison's ear before going back to typing in the phone number. He tapped the enter key and the results quickly showed up on the screen.

_"Instant match, a payphone just outside of Miami. That explains why Arlene couldn't call her back. Let me run the address of the payphone and see what's there."_

More typing ensued before Dexter sat back in his chair and surveyed the results with Harrison.

_"What are the chances of the payphone being next to a shitty motel? She's probably staying there, or at least she was when she made the call. It's worth checking out."_

"I'm going back out. It might be a late night for me." Dexter informed Jamie when she came back into the living room. He handed off Harrison to her and was on his way.

The motel was only a few miles outside of Miami. The GPS calculated his best route as he took to the highway. It was when he was just leaving the Miami limits that his cell phone rang. The words "Deb's cell" displayed. His sister was the last person he felt like talking to right now. She was calling to bitch him out for not being at the station like he had promised her he would be. His thumb tapped the "Ignore" button, letting Debra's call go to voice mail.

The motel was a few miles off the highway on a back road that seem to not get a lot of traffic. It would certainly be an ideal location for someone who was on the lam. The graffiti covered payphone booth stood to the side of the motel manager's office. Only a handful of other automobiles were parked in the spaces in front of the rooms. Dexter parked his Escape in the space closest to the office and got out.

"Rentin' a room by the hour?" A rather large balding man asked Dex from behind a counter as soon as Morgan entered the office.

"No, I was wondering if you could help me. My girlfriend and I got into a fight last night and I think she might have rented a room here."

"She a blonde, hot piece of ass with an attitude?" The man then asked before spitting tobacco into a cup.

"Yeah, she'd definitely fit that description." Dexter replied with a nod.

"She's in room four."

"Thanks.."

Dexter left the office and began making his way to the motel room with a '4' on the door. He could actually feel his heart pounding in his chest with every step he took. She was there, only a few feet away from him. He had no idea that he was going to be able to find her so easily. He stopped at the correct door and breathed in deeply. Dex wasn't exactly sure what he was going to say to her. The last time he had seen her was in the prison visiting room where she bit his lip and said goodbye.

He knocked lightly on the door before saying her name. Nothing.

"Hannah, it's Dexter."

A chain lock clacked, the door unlocked, and then it opened. There was Hannah McKay. She was wearing a black top and jeans instead of the orange D.O.C. jumpsuit. Her blue eyes pierced through him as she immediately stared intently. Dexter couldn't tell if she was surprised to see him. Hannah was keeping her emotions close to the vest. The awkward silence between them was mounting until finally she spoke:

"Hello, Dexter..."


	2. Nice Blade

**A/N: Just wanted to give a fair warning that this episode lives up to the 'M' rating of this fic. So be forewarned, though if you guys watch the show, you should be used to the edginess of it all. Please do review if you like what you read. All constructive feedback is very welcomed and appreciated!**

* * *

******All characters in this fic are property of Showtime.**

**Season 8, Episode 2: Nice Blade**

Dexter breathed deep taking in the sight of the woman he was in love with; his femme fatale, Hannah McKay. As he drew in his air sharply before he asked the first question that popped into his mind:

"How did you escape?"

Hannah quickly gave an eyebrow raise before folding her arms in front of her chest.

"Does that really matter? You were ready to let me rot in prison." She answered back, leaning in against the door frame. Her bitterness over his betrayal was still evident in her voice.

"You know why." Dex quickly replied, not wanting to let her forget about the poisoned water bottle.

Hannah gave a forced laugh and then smiled. Her tongue casually wet her lips before she spoke again.

"How did you find me?"

"Does that really matter?" He breathed, repeating her same words back to her which caused her to smirk.

"No." she paused, raising an eyebrow, "Coming in?"

Hannah slowly took a step to the side to give him access to her motel room. Without even taking a second to think about it, Dexter crossed the threshold and allowed Hannah to close the door. The room was a dump. The motel rooms had obviously been decorated and furnished in the 1970s because it was complete with a shag carpet and wood panel color TV.

After giving the shitty motel room a quick eye scan, he went to turn back around to face Hannah, but was quickly met with a switchblade knife being pressed to his throat. He swallowed hard; a bit startled. Their eyes locked before he spoke:

"Nice blade." Dexter breathed, almost like he was impressed.

"Little something I kept from my time with Wayne..." explained Hannah, leaning in close. He could feel her breath on his face.

"Quite the memento." He commented back with a quick raise of both eyebrows.

"Why did you come here? To lead your sister to me so she can arrest me again?" Hannah then asked putting a small amount of pressure on the blade that caused Dex to suck in air.

"Deb only knows that you escaped. She has no idea that I found you. I kept her in the dark."

Hannah smirked, her brilliant blue eyes darted to the carpet. She letting out a scoff, sweeping a blonde strand of hair from her face with the small swing of her head. Before she spoke, their eyes met again.

"Protecting me from your sister? You don't expect me to believe that, do you?" She questioned. Her voice now quivering with anger. The knife blade remained steadily pressed against him.

"It's the truth. I love-"

Dexter stopped talking mid-sentence when he felt the knife cut into his flesh. It wasn't deep, just far enough to draw blood and cause him to wince in pain.

"No, Dexter, if you really loved me then you would have gotten your sister to back off so I didn't have to matters into my own hands!"

"Deb's my little sister, and you should have come to me and let me handle it before you tried to kill her!" He raised his voice back, not backing down an inch despite the fact that she had cut into him.

Hannah shook her head and then there was a silence. Dexter thought that she was going to lower the knife, but instead she kept it steady and spoke through grit teeth:

"You killed my father. So you're the only one of us who can kill family members who get in the way? You're a fucking hypocrite, just like Debra."

She had a point. Dexter's reason behind disposing of Clint McKay was to protect Hannah. Their future would have been compromised by that degenerate hustler who would sell out his own family for quick cash. Hannah had seen Deb in the same light. Despite any attempts of being reasoned with, his sister was dead set against letting them have their happily ever after.

Dex let out a deep sigh. He could feel the warm trickle of blood streaming down his neck. At any moment, she could decide to go deeper into him, slitting his throat. Dexter knew he could stop her if he wanted, but somehow, having his life in her hands was an adrenaline rush that aroused him. In one quick motion, his right hand grabbed hold of her hand that was holding the switchblade.

"One clean knife stroke across the neck. Sever the carotid artery and the jugular vein and I bleed out in a matter of seconds." He said in a low voice while he moved her hand to rest the blade at each location on his neck that he was referring to.

Hannah's chest rose and fell rapidly. She allowed him the freedom of moving the knife to either side of his neck while he expertly explained the most effective way to end his life. She could tell that he was surrendering to her fully.

"You said that we could never trust each other..." Hannah reminded him in a hushed whisper as she felt his hand lift from hers and then drop to his side.

While Dexter didn't forget the fact that he had told her that when he visited her in prison, at this moment in time, he was willing to put all of his trust in her. Maybe it was because he was banking on the fact that despite her anger, she still loved him. Or maybe it was because he loved her too and could sense that she wouldn't go through with it.

"Do what you gotta to do..." He breathed.

Hannah drew in a breath and held it. Slowly, she brought her face closer to his until their foreheads touched. When she finally exhaled, they breathed in unison. She retracted the knife.

"Hannah..." sighed Dex before he brought his lips to hers.

The kiss was tender at first, but quickly became passionate as Hannah dropped her knife and wrapped her arms around Dexter's neck. Then, just as suddenly as it had happened in the prison, she bit down hard on his lip in the exact same place she had before.

Dex pulled away as he growled in pain. Hannah gave him an evil grin, her eyes focusing on the blood that began to pour out from what had been a scab. Instead of wiping away the blood, Dexter caught her off guard by grabbing her by the throat and pushing her back into the hotel wall. Hannah winced when the back of her head hit into the dated wallpaper.

She smiled and quickly raised her eyebrows. She was loving the rough foreplay, especially because he had that look on his face. He was showing her that side of him that she had first witnessed at Santa's Adventure the night he was planning on killing her.

Dexter's grasp on her throat tightened causing Hannah's mouth to gape open. When it did, he moved in and began kissing her again. She brought her hands to his face compelling him to loosen his grip so that she could kiss him back. His blood smeared across their mouths and tongues, before Dex caught her bottom lip with his teeth and clammed down on it.

"Ahh!" Hannah cried out, a chunk of pink skin ripped free.

He let go of Hannah's lip when he tasted her blood. She then glared at him with an intensity that was surely driven by lust. Hannah used her tongue to try and wipe the blood away, but it continued to pool where the skin had been. And then, she made her move by grabbing hold of two handfuls of his shirt , twisted him around in order to turn the tables on him. His back slammed against the wall and she immediately brought her bloody mouth to his neck. She traced her tongue along the length of the cut her knife had made, evoking a moan. Morgan could feel his heart pounding in his chest. He closed his eyes and breathed deep when he then felt soft bloody kisses moving up the side of his neck.

Without warning came a rush of pain when she gave his neck a quick bite. He gritted his teeth and grimaced before clawing the back of her head with his hand, entwining his fingers in her golden wavy hair. He used his strength to regain his dominate position, with her back up against the hotel wall. This time, his hands moved down to her jeans. Fingers fiddled with the button and zipper before he ripped the denim down in one forceful motion to expose her bare lower half. Hannah quickly stepped out of her jeans right before Dexter lifted her up off her feet and pinned her up against the wall.

Hannah's chest was heaving. She was completely turned on by the fact that he was dominating her with the same ferociousness that he had once saved only for his dark passenger's deeds. Her hands began to caress his face as he worked on opening his khaki pants. The sound of his zipper running down its tracks was quickly followed by him fully thrusting into her. The force caused Hannah to slam her head back into the wall as she let out a cry that was of both pain and pleasure. Dexter brought his forehead to hers, their breathing staggered as he found a fast rhythm to move by. She wrapped her legs tightly around his waist and the bloody kisses resumed.

* * *

Debra muttered a string of obscenities as she struggled to navigate through the contact list on her phone while unlocking her beach house door. This was going to be her second attempt of trying to get a hold of him today. Finally, she found her brother's name from the list and selected it. She brought the phone to her ear and it started to ring.

"Fuck me, Dexter, answer your fucking phone!" Deb screamed aloud in frustration when the line continued to ring.

She had shuffled into her beach abode. Her handbag, she carelessly tossed onto her dining table before finally hearing Dexter's voice mail recording. At the beep, she spoke:

"Dex, it's me, where the hell are you? I sure as shit didn't see you at the station today. Can you just come over to my place after you get this message? The last thing I want to do is spend the evening alone. Just please come over, I don't care what time it is when you get this message. It's not like I'm going to sleep a fucking wink anyway. Bye."

Deb ended the call and placed her phone down on the table. She couldn't help but wonder what had her brother so preoccupied that he wouldn't answer her calls. Perhaps he was out fulfilling his need to kill; as if two deaths in a shipping container the night before wasn't enough to quench his appetite for death. It made her sick to her stomach to even think about.

Her next move was to the kitchen. More specifically, her refrigerator for a cold beer. The metal cap twisted off with ease. She threw it in the general direction of her trash can without even caring about whether or not it made it in. All she cared about was taking that first long swig of beer. Debra exhaled in a long sigh. She needed that .

Surely she could find something on TV to keep her occupied until Dexter's arrival, however late that was going to be. Deb plopped down in one of her living room chairs with her beer still in hand. It was when she leaned over to her side table for the remote, that she froze. Her eyes focused in on the rectangular framed photograph.

The photo had been meant to capture the biggest accomplishment of her career: her promotion to Lieutenant of homicide. Setting her beer down on the coffee table, she then grabbed hold of the picture and brought it to her. Her brilliant brown eyes studied it. Debra Morgan was smiling proudly in the photograph, dressed in her navy blue police uniform, Mathews to her right, and to her left: the then newly appointed Captain Maria Laguerta. The woman who had presented her as the youngest officer ever to make Lieutenant at that press conference. The very same woman she had murdered with a single gunshot to the chest a day before.

Debra broke the silence with a strangled cry. She had been trying to hold it back, but it was no use. The sight of herself in uniform, the same uniform her father had worn, while she stood in between her father's best friend and the woman she killed for her brother, was far too overwhelming. It was truly clear to her how far she had fallen: From the determined cop who had fought to climb the ranks of Miami Metro to a basket case who was willing to cover up crimes and murder to protect her serial killer brother. And it was all Dexter's fault. Her finding out about his side job as the Bay Harbor Butcher was what set her fall from grace into motion.

Debra's tear stained face contorted in anger. She propelled the framed picture through the air. It hit her wall hard; shattering the glass upon impact before it even hit the floor. Deb then shot out of the chair and picked up her beer bottle. She stomped over to her dining room table where she had left her handbag. Forcing it open, she then removed her Xanax prescription bottle. Morgan dispensed three pills into her hand and shoved them into her mouth. She brought the beer bottle to her mouth and threw her head back, gulping down the alcohol and Alprazolam.

* * *

Dexter's eyes blinked opened and closed a few times before he was fully awake. Hannah was asleep in his arms, her head resting on his chest. The white bed sheet was twisted around their naked bodies as they laid together in the messy bed. Running his tongue over his lip, he tasted the dried blood. Dex's eyes shifted to the old Cartex digital clock on the nightstand. 5:36 AM. He gently stroked the side of Hannah's face, brushing back her blonde hair.

_"I can't begin to make sense out of what Hannah and I have. It is definitely the most intimate connection I've had with anyone. And that's saying a lot coming from someone who once thought that he was a monster not capable of human emotions."_

Hannah stirred slightly in her sleep before her blue eyes opened. She smiled at him before bringing her hand to his face, guiding his lips to hers for a soft kiss.

_"But Hannah loves me; All of me. My darkness neither scared nor consumed her. She helped me understand it better. Despite my betrayal, Hannah broke out of prison instead of turning against me for a plea deal, unlike what she did to Wayne Randall. And I can't even imagine my future without her in it. I don't want to admit that my feelings for her run that deep even after what she did to Deb, but they do."_

"Morning." She whispered in the early morning darkness. "Who knew angry make-up sex could be so cathartic?"

"Yeah." Dex replied with a small chuckle.

He shifted his body and sat up in the bed causing Hannah to narrow her eyes. It was too early for him to be cutting their time together short.

"Where are you going? I doubt it's even six o'clock yet." She commented rolling onto her side to face him.

"I'm going to get dressed, clean myself up in the bathroom, and then get us some fresh bagels for breakfast. I saw a bakery when I got off the highway not far from here."

"That sounds nice, kind of early though. Not that I object, I am starving."

"I have to get back to the apartment before Jamie and Harrison wake up, that way they'll think I just came home from work late." He explained as he flicked on a light and began getting dressed.

"How is Harrison?" Hannah asked with a smile. She hadn't seen the little guy since Christmas Eve.

"He's good, keeps asking for you. I think you really made an impression on him. He really likes you."

"Well, I really like him..."

Dexter smiled in response to her comment. He put on his underwear and then his khaki pants that had been laying in a jumbled mess with his and Hannah's clothing on the floor. Upon putting on his them on, he reached into his back pocket and removed his phone to check for messages.

Hannah ran her tongue over her bottom lip that was still stained with blood. Sitting up in bed, she brought one of the pillows to her naked torso and hugged it. She was contemplating what she was going to say next, and there was a long pause before she spoke again.

"Dexter, do you want more kids?" She finally asked before biting the side of her bottom lip that wasn't cut.

"I don't know, I haven't really thought about it." He replied honestly while his thumb navigated his missed call list where he saw his sister's name twice with a voice mail too. He would wait until he was out getting breakfast to listen to it.

Hannah could see that he was preoccupied and decided to drop the topic. There would be much to discuss over breakfast; not only the question of whether or not they were back together, but also what her next move would be as a fugitive of the law. She couldn't hide out in a shitty motel room forever.

Once fully dress, Dexter went into the bathroom and washed off all the dry blood from his face and neck. The small straight cut from the knife was still visible as well as the scabbed cut on his lip.

"Coffee and a bagel assortment?" Dex asked Hannah when he returned to her, fishing for his car keys in his pocket.

"Can I get some juice instead of coffee?" She asked with a smile cocking her head to the side slightly.

"Sure, I'll be right back." responded Dex before giving her a quick peck on the forehead.

The first thing that Dexter did upon getting into his Ford Escape was pull out his phone and listen to the voice mail that Debra had left him.

_"Shit. Deb expected me to keep her company last night. I'm going to have to get over there before work and try and smooth things over."_

Harry appeared in the passenger seat with his arms folded.

_Harry: "If you weren't preoccupied with Hannah last night, you would have answered Debra's call. What was that last night, Dex? She holds a knife to your neck and you end up spending the night with her?"_

Harry looked at his adopted son with a look of confusion and disapproval. Dexter let out a long sigh before shooting him an angry stare.

_"That's none of your business. Hannah and I work through our issues different than most couples. We'll leave it at that."_

_Harry: "I'm not trying to judge you, Son, but, she tried to kill your sister. Who's to say she wouldn't try it again? You can't possibly believe that there is any kind of a future for you and Hannah."_

_"Hannah only went after Deb when she saw her as a threat. If I can convince Deb to back off-"_

_Harry:"You weren't able to do that before. What makes you think you can get Debra to leave her alone when now she has a personal reason to want to see her back behind bars."_

_"Because now Deb has killed someone to protect us; Just like Hannah killed Price. If I can make Deb aware of that, then maybe she will drop her obsession of seeing Hannah brought to justice."_

The trip to the bakery was uneventful. Dexter was the first customer of the morning and bagels were nice and fresh. He had decided that time was of the essence and that he would drop breakfast off to Hannah before heading back home to Miami. He still had to grab a shower and change of clothes before checking in on Deb.

A knock on the motel room door and Hannah answered dressed in her clothing from the day before. Her blonde hair was damp as evidence of a shower. She stepped away from the door to allow him in.

"I got you some orange juice and an assortment of bagels with cream cheese. I didn't know what you liked so I got you a bit of everything." Dex explained handing her both the glass bottle of juice and the bakery bag.

"Are you not going to have breakfast with me? We still need to talk about some things."

She sat down on the bed with her legs crossed in front of her.

"No, sorry, I have to get back to Miami. Deb had called last night and left a message. She sounded really upset. She's been dealing with a lot of stress lately so I wanted to get over to her place before work to check on her." He admitted.

"What's got her so stressed out? Me escaping?" She went on to question before taking her first taste of the orange juice.

"That and some other stuff that I can't get into right now. I'm sorry I can't stay. I'll bring you dinner tonight after work and we can talk then, okay?"

Hannah nodded to silently show that she understood and accepted the fact that their time together was going to be put on hold until later. She was going to be spending her day in that shitty motel room watching the handful of channels available on the television that was older than her.

"Just try and lay low like you've been doing. If anything comes up, you can call my cell from that payphone."

"I'll be fine. I've got bagels." She told him with a smile and an eyebrow raise as she brought a seasoned bagel out from the bag and held it up.

"Oh, and just in case you need some cash." said Dex reaching into his back pocket to grab his wallet.

"Look at us, in a shit hole motel room the morning after you screwed me and your pulling out your wallet." Hannah chuckled with a smile while she began to spread the cream cheese over the bagel with the plastic knife provided.

He narrowed his eyes slightly as his mind painted the picture she provided him with. He hadn't even thought of that. The fact that Hannah found it a funny coincidence made him chuckle too before replying:

"I don't think prostitutes get bought breakfast." He pointed out with a smirk while pulling out a twenty dollar bill.

"I'm sure the high dollar girls do. The ones worth more than twenty dollars a night." She said returning the smirk. They both started to laugh.

"But seriously, I've got cash. I had Arlene withdraw money from my bank account and leave it at my place before I escaped. I can take care of myself."

"I know you can. It doesn't mean I still don't worry." He admitted putting the money away.

Dexter leaned in and gave her a soft peck on the lips. He then retreated toward the door. The moment he placed his hand on the door knob, Hannah said three words that made him freeze in place.

"I love you."

Dex inhaled sharply and held it. There was something about actually hearing her say it aloud that struck a chord with him. Sure they had erotic passion the night before, but this was the first time since he had sent her to prison that one of them had said those three words. He had tried to do so at knife point, but at the time she wasn't having it. But now, in the aftermath of their post-coital bliss, things had changed.

"I love you too." He breathed, finally letting his air from his chest. It felt good to say it back to her and know that he really meant it. He wasn't just going through the motions like he had done in the first few years of his relationship with Rita.

The drive back to Miami took a little longer than the drive to the motel yesterday. Luckily it was early enough that when he arrived back at the apartment, Jamie and Harrison were both still asleep. It was after a shower and a change of clothing that they were up having breakfast. Like usual, Jamie was easily convinced by his excuse of working late. She even bought his explanation of a razor causing the cut on his neck. If only Deb would be that easy to convince about where and what he had been doing last night.

With a box of Sadie's donuts and a cardboard carrier holding two cups of coffee, Dexter approached the door to his sister's beach house. He struggled for a brief moment in order to knock on a door.

"Deb, it's me!" He shouted aloud after a minute of seeing no response from inside the house.

The key under the doormat provided Dexter with access to the home. He set the breakfast down on Debra's dining table before venturing further to find her.

"Deb? I brought breakfast." announced Dex, breaking the silence.

He noticed the broken picture frame on the carpet in her living room and quickly called out her name again.

Without a reply from his sister, Dexter quickened his pace and went right into her bedroom. There he found her sprawled out on her bed with her clothing from the day before still on. Of course he only guessed it was the clothes from yesterday because of how wrinkled they were. She had clearly slept in them.

"Deb? You okay?" He asked giving her shoulder a gentle nudge in an attempt to wake her.

Upon being touched, Debra's body flinched and she lifted her head off the mattress.

"What the fuck time is it?" She inquired with only one eye open.

"It's a little after seven. I brought over some donuts and coffee." Dexter replied taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

"Shove it up your ass, where the hell were you last night? Do you not even look at your phone? I left you a message asking you to get your ass over here!" She hollered sitting straight up before climbing out of bed.

She let out a sigh before bringing her hand to her head. It felt like a migraine was setting in. She could really use another Xanax just to deal with the shit the day was already throwing at her.

"I know, and I'm sorry. I got lost track of time. I was wrapping up the last of the Laguerta stuff and then I took the boat out to-"

"Spare me the bullshit, Dex. I know what you were doing last night." muttered Debra, cutting him off from finishing her explanation.

"You do?" Dexter asked back with a frown.

There really was no way she could have known he spent the night with Hannah. Was there? If she did, Deb would have found out where Hannah was hiding out and would have been there to arrest her.

"You were doing what you do. No doubt that cut on your neck and your busted lip had something to do with it. And just so were mother fucking crystal clear: I don't want anything to do with it. I'm done."

Debra couldn't even bring herself to actually say the words "kill" or "murder". Her mind was being plagued by all of it. The last thing she needed was for it to come out of her mouth. But she had no control over that. There was no escaping death and murder with her being the Lieutenant of Homicide. The irony was astounding.

He breathed a small sigh of relief and nodded slowly.

_"My sister is under the impression that I was out killing someone last night instead of having sex with the woman who tried to kill her. I call that a win."_

"Fair enough..." Dex breathed while getting to his feet.

His phone vibrated and sent out a tone that signaled he had an incoming message. He removed it from his back pocket and saw that it was Miami Metro notifying him of a crime scene.

"Looks like we're going to have to eat breakfast on the way to a crime scene." He reported aloud.

"Fuck me, just go ahead and go. I'll meet you there."

He nodded in agreement and left his sister to get ready for the work day. Taking his cup of coffee and donut, he exited the beach house and began to travel to the address Miami Metro had provided him with.

Dexter pulled his Escape into an abandon parking lot of what used to be a department store over a decade ago; The lot had been vacant ever since. He put on his white latex gloves before grabbing his kit from the back of his SUV. Flashing his Forensics laminate allowed access under the yellow tape as he walked to the scene.

"What do have here, Vince?"

"Pretty gruesome stuff, and you know that's saying a lot coming from me. Two victims presumed to be mother and child. Both with complete laceration of the carotid arteries. No indications of sexual assault. My guess is that they were dumped out here. Estimated time of death for both victims is last night around eight o'clock judging by the condition of the bodies. We found the woman's ransacked purse a few feet away, identifies her as Audrey Jenner of Miami Florida. The female child, I'm guessing, is around the age of three." Masuka explained after he looked up from his clipboard.

Dexter carefully walked up to where both of the victims were lying on the pavement. His eyes scanned the blood and then the rest of the surrounding area. Batista noticed him investigating and approached him.

_"I had described the act of slitting someone's throat to Hannah during our twisted game of foreplay. The sick irony of these murders isn't lost on me." _

"Ay dios mio, shit like this gets to me. My Auri was once this age. What does the blood say, Dexter?"

"Starting with the adult victim: The outward pooling of the blood underneath the Audrey Jenner indicates that the murder slit her throat at this scene. And judging by depth and angle of incision along her neck, the murderer sliced her open while standing behind her." Dex explained.

"So the murderer didn't just dump them out here. This is the actual spot where the murders took place?"

"Yeah, but she was also moved after she was cut. A larger pool to the left suggests that the victim fell face first. She was then turned over."

Dexter crouched down beside the victim before continuing his analysis of the scene:

"There is a white ring around her finger on her left hand. My guess is that it was a wedding ring. It was removed post-mortem. Judging by the patterned abrasions on her wrists, her hands were bound together by some kind of braided rope."

"And the little girl?" Batista asked as Morgan moved over to the other body.

The body was lying face down in the sea of red. Dexter carefully turned her over so that he could comment on the younger victim.

"Positioning of the body in relationship to the adult suggest that the child tried to run. One of her shoes is missing, there was a significant struggle before..." Dexter trailed off while his eyes still focused on the little girl.

_"She looks to be about Harrison's age. I will never understand how someone could do something so heinous to someone still so sweet and innocent. It's pretty scary to think that there are people out there who have much more darkness inside of them than I do."_

"Do we have any kind of a motive for this?" Quinn asked not even wanting to look down at the gruesome crime scene before him.

"My guess is theft. I think that the victims were carjacked by the perpetrator. They were driven to this remote lot that had no lights or security cameras. He forced them out of the vehicle and killed them."

"But why kill them? Why not just take the car and throw them out on in the street and peel out if that was all he wanted?" Joey asked.

"No witnesses, maybe the victims saw his face or knew who he was. He could have panicked and decided to dispose of them quickly." Dex explained.

"We're working on getting an identification for the child by notifying the next of kin. Quinn, check the DMV records and find out the make and model of the vehicle registered to Audrey Jenner, if there is one. We'll put out an APB on it."

"You should make a few phone calls to the local chop and pawn shops. If this guy is a thief, he'll be looking to turn a profit. I'd get a detailed description of the wedding ring from the spouse. My money is on the murder pawning it." advised Dexter.

"Holy shitload of fuck, Jesus!" Debra exclaimed the moment she arrived at the crime scene. She, like everyone else, was taken aback by the sight.

"Okay, umm, what do we have here?" She then asked, doing her best to reign herself in and do her job. The Lieutenant of Homicide wasn't allowed to be rattled by a crime scene.

Masuka did his best on filling her in on the evidence they had gathered of the crime thus far. Dexter noticed her looking at him the entire time Vince was speaking to her. He decided to shrug it off and begin to collect DNA swabs from underneath both sets of hands of the victims.

"You're looking for a carjacker, how about fucking fugitive Hannah McKay?" Deb offered folding her arms in front of her while her eyes focused on her brother.

"Hannah McKay? Am I missing something? What at this crime scene points to her?" Joey questioned looking at the Lieutenant like she had pulled the name out of her ass.

"Nothing, Hannah would never do anything like this." Dexter quickly responded with his eyes narrowed. He felt anger beginning to build inside him.

"Tell that to the woman she killed when with Wayne Randall. How did she kill her again? With a fucking knife?" Debra responded with hateful sarcasm causing Dex to stand upright.

"I don't think this fits. Reports on the Wayne Randall spree killings said the victims were stabbed repeatedly in the chest. These victims were cut once, across the throat. And Hannah escaped two days ago, these victims were killed last night." Joey explained, he was trying to give her the clear cut facts.

_"Hannah didn't do this. I was with her last night at the time of the murders. But, I doubt Deb would much like to hear the details of the alibi. And the knife; The lacerations on both victims were from a thick wide blade like that of a hunting knife, not a switchblade like Hannah's. "_

"We're talking about the cold blooded murder of a small child here, Deb. Do you really think Hannah McKay would be capable of that?" Angel asked with a surprised look on his face.

"I wouldn't have fucking named her as our suspect if I didn't! She will kill ANYONE who gets in her way! And that mother and child were in the way of having a vehicle to escaping Miami in!" Debra snapped back causing everyone at the scene to turn their attention toward her.

Dexter sprung into action by grabbing his sister by the arm in an attempt to lead her away from the crime scene so they could talk in private. She jerked away from his grasp causing him her in a whisper through his gritted teeth:

"We need to talk, follow me."

Reluctantly, Debra accompanied her brother underneath the yellow "do not cross" police tape. They put some distance between them and the rest of Miami Metro so that they could both speak freely without worrying about being overheard.

"You need to get a hold of yourself. You can't come off half cocked with a wild theory about Hannah just because you hate her and want to make her Miami Metro's top priority to find. It's just going to make you look like you are cracking under the stress of Laguerta's murder." He warned.

"Maybe it's because I fucking am..." Debra muttered, on the verge of tears. She fought them back and glanced over at her team who was looking in their direction before looking back at him.

"Dex, you might be able to go on with your life like nothing happened, but I can't. Laguerta may have been a huge bitch and a pain in the ass, but she didn't deserve to die."

"So what does that have to do with Hannah? We both know that she didn't commit these murders. She would never hurt a child. I've seen her with Harrison. She's great with him."

The thought of Hannah McKay being trusted around her nephew sickened her stomach. What if it was Harrison that she had decided to poison? Her brother had sworn to her that he would never let any harm come to his family after Trinity killed Rita, and yet he trusted a murderer with his son.

"What the hell did that manipulative bitch do to you to make you so blind to what she is? She tried to kill me, Dexter, maybe you fucking forgot about that, so I'm bringing it up again! Hannah McKay is a danger to your family!" Deb hollered with the hope that her words would sink into her brother's thick skull.

"No, she tried to kill you, just you."

"And what, do you don't think it could have been Harrison?" She interjected.

"No, she only poisoned you because you threatened to arrest her for Sal Price's murder. You know that she would never have went after you if you would have just accepted my relationship with her."

Debra's jaw dropped and her eyes widened. She couldn't believe what had just come out of his mouth. Did he really believe what he was saying?

"Are you fucking kidding me? It's my fault now that Hannah tried to kill me because I could give a shit about your sick fucking romance with a killer? Fuck you." She scoffed before she began to walk away from him.

"Wait, Deb." Dexter piped, making an attempt to stop her. "I'm sorry. I know how upset you are after what you had to do to Maria. And I know that focusing all your attention on Hannah seems like a good distraction so that you don't have to think about what happened that night, but-"

"No, Dex, bringing Hannah to justice isn't a distraction for me, it's going to be my redemption. When I put that murdering bitch behind bars, I will prove to myself that I'm still the cop I was before you pulled me into the mind-fuck of a nightmare that is your life."

"You are still that same cop. You took care of Laguerta to protect the both of us. You had no choice, because she was going to destroy both of our lives with the evidence that she had. Hannah killing Price was the same thing. He found out that I was seeing her and was threatening to put me in his next book about her. She killed him to protect me. Sometimes, life just needs to be taken." explained Dexter.

He was doing his best show her how Hannah and her had both killed for very similar reasons. His hope was that drawing parallels between them would make Debra see that Hannah McKay wasn't the inhuman monster she was making her out to be.

"No, Dexter, I'm nothing like her. I'm a police officer for Miami Metro Homicide. I spent my life protecting and saving lives, not ending and destroying them. This conversation is over. That bitch is going down."

With that, Debra turned her back on her brother and began making her way back to the crime scene to deal with a few reports who had shown up on the scene.

_"Deb's right. Our conversation about Hannah is over. I now know that that I can't convince her to call off her hunt for Hannah McKay. She's obsessed, and that's when Deb is most dangerous. If I was able to find Hannah in a day's search, then my sister will quickly be on her trail too."_

Sergeant Batista was quick to approach Dexter when he went back to the crime scene to collect his forensic kit. No doubt he was going to be asking about Debra's odd behavior and the visibly heated conversation that he had had with his sister in private.

"I don't mean to get in the middle of what looks like a family problem, but-"

"No, Angel, it's fine. It's just that Deb is taking Maria's death really hard. It really bothers her to lose one of our own. She's been really distraught about it." Morgan explained while compiling his kit.

"I don't blame her. Maria's death is affecting all of us. Deb's a good cop, but her behavior today...You should try and speak with her about taking some personal time." Batista suggested.

"What do you think that private conversation was about? You know, Deb, her way of dealing with something is to work more hours. Maybe you could try and convince her that taking a break would be in her best interest." replied Dex. He was putting the task of talking to Deb about taking time off right back on Angel. Perhaps if the idea came from him, she would be more likely to comply.

"My job is done here. I'll have the blood report on your desk by tomorrow morning." He added before making a quick exit.

He had all the blood evidence he needed to spit out a report. What he now had to focus on was what he had to do about Hannah. He took his white latex gloves off, put his kit back in the Escape, and then climbed into the driver seat. Of course, it was Harry who appeared sitting next to him as soon as he started the engine.

_Harry: "I'm not going to say I told you so, Dex, but could have you seen that conversation with Debra going any differently? You can't expect her to forgive and forget. If you care about Hannah, then you need to help her disappear."_

Dexter closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.

_"I don't want her to disappear..."_

_Harry: "Well it's either that or Debra will arrest her again and she'll be back in prison. You have two options; The result of both are the same: you aren't going to be able to be with her, son. I'm sorry."_

_"I should have never given Deb that pen. If I hadn't then Hannah and I could have been together for the rest of our lives; growing old together..."_

_Harry: "You can't regret the decision you made. It was for your sister. You have to think about your future, both you and Deb's. If you love Hannah like you say you do, then you will get her as far away from Miami as you can as soon as possible."_

Dexter nodded his head slowly. Harry was right. He needed to think about what was best for both Hannah and Debra, and that was getting as much distant between them as possible. It was going to be hard to have to say goodbye to her, but better her living free without him then behind bars.

* * *

It was only the late morning, and hunger was already beginning to set in for Hannah. She had eaten every one of the bagels that Dexter had left with her and she felt like she could eat a dozen more. It would be a long wait for the day's end when her lover promised to return to her with dinner.

Hannah sat on the motel bed as she used her switchblade knife to clean the dirt out from under each of her nails. When she finished, she closed the knife and then hit the button, causing it to spring back open. She did it over and over again, before finally setting the knife down on the bedside table. Her stomach growled causing her to let out a long sigh.

She remembered that there was a snack vending machine just outside of the mangers office. Perhaps a few bags of chips and some crackers could curve her appetite until Dexter brought a substantial meal. She opened the bedside draw where she had put her cash and removed a few dollar bills, stashing them into the pocket of her jeans.

Swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, she reached down and grabbed her short brown boots. She put them on her feet, before getting up and opening her motel room door. The Florida sun made her squint. Being cooped up in a motel room for the past two days made her feel like she was a shut in. She hated it. Hannah loved being outdoors and working in her nursery.

She breathed deep; taking the fresh air into her lungs before closing the unlocked door behind her. Hannah took her time strolling by the three motel rooms on her way toward the office. She might a well enjoy her time outside.

Hannah had to walk passed the manager office door to get to the vending machines that were right near the phone booth that she had used before. Her presence caught the attention of the manager. He smiled, bearing his rotten teeth at the sight of her, put on his hat to cover his balding head, and went outside to approach her.

"Can I help you with sum-thin'?" He asked standing behind Hannah while she fed money into the machine.

The man's burley body casted a shadow where she stood. Hannah took a deep breath and realized that she could smell him. It was a strong combination of cigarettes, alcohol, and filth.

"No, I'm fine." She replied, continuing with the business of making her snack selection on the machine.

"Yes you are..." The manager commented back. He licking his lips while eyeing her slender frame from behind.

Hannah rolled her eyes and ignored his comment. Hopefully he would get the message and back off. She had dealt with hicks like him many times back home in Clopton, Alabama. Most of them were Clint's poker buddies.

"So, I take it you and your boyfriend didn't kiss and make up last night 'cause your still here. I could take ya back to my place and whip ya up sum-thin' special. How'd you like that?"

"I wouldn't." muttered Hannah while she quickly bent down and grabbed her bags of chips.

She then tried to walk back the way she came, but the manager brought his arm up, placing his hand on the machine, which blocked her from walking on.

"Now there ain't no reason to be rude, purty lil' lady. I reckon your disrespect's what got ya popped in the mouth right there."

He brought his free hand up to Hannah's face to point out the cut on her lip, and she swatted his hand away.

"Get out of my way." She ordered, not showing any fear.

Her words caused him to move his arm and take a step back with his smile still plastered on his face. His eyes followed her as she began to walk back to her motel room.

"You're a feisty lil' lady, aren't ya." He chuckled while he followed after her.

Sensing that he was following her, Hannah quickened her stride. She wanted to get back to her room before he could catch up with her. The sound on his footsteps behind her sounded like they were getting closer. And then, she felt him grab her arm causing her to react on instinct by pulling away from him and coming back with a hard fist to his face. The force knocked his hat off his head as he stumbled backwards.

"You fuckin' bitch!" He yelled in anger as he immediately began to run after her.

Hannah burst into her room and slammed the door shut as quickly as she could. But, before she was able to lock it, he rammed his body weight through the door, sending her falling to the floor. He walked through the wide open doorway before he unbuckled his belt, and slide it out from around his large frame.

"I'm gonna teach you what happens when 'lil whores are naughty." The manager hissed snapping his leather belt together in his hand before throwing it on the floor so he could unbutton his pants.

Dexter pulled his SUV into the parking space a few feet from Hannah's motel room. Upon getting out of his Ford, he noticed three bags of chips scattered across the pavement and a man's baseball cap.

In the motel room, Hannah scrambled to her feet and made a dash over to her night stand to where she had left her switch blade. The moment she whipped back around, the man grabbed her arm holding the knife with one hand, and her throat with his other. With his strength, he lifted her off her feet and slammed her down onto the bed. Her head hit into the headboard and then he began to slam her arm back against it causing her to drop her knife onto the bed. He climbed on top of her, further impeding her from getting away from him.

"Yeah, I'm gonna give it to you nice and rough, baby!" He exclaimed, his right hand still clamped onto her neck causing her to gasp for air.

Hannah's blue eyes began to sparkle; Tears were beginning to form in them while she tried to reach for her fallen knife that was just out of her reach. And then, seemingly out of nowhere, the leather belt pulled around the motel manager's neck. He let go of Hannah's throat as both his hands were immediately drawn to his own neck. Hannah began to cough and gag as she breathed rapidly, bringing much needed air into her lungs. She looked up with distain at her attacker who was beginning taken care of by her boyfriend.

Dexter shook with rage as he pulled back on the belt as hard as he could, cutting off every bit his air supply. Morgan then brought a knee up across the manager's back to allow him even more leverage to strangle him, while also keeping the guy from falling back onto him.

"You fucking inbred bastard!" Hannah screamed as she plunged her knife deep into his large gut.

She jammed the knife all the way in, before removing it and doing the same thing again on the other side of his stomach. Dexter's eyes widened as he witnessed his girlfriend begin to repeatedly stab the manager over and over again in anger. The blood was pouring from his gut, turning the bed sheets a deep vibrant red. He felt himself release the tension from around the man's fat neck as blood began to flow from his mouth. Dex was in awe as Hannah got on her knees, kneeling before their dying victim before she rammed the knife into his chest where she let it stay. Morgan allowed the body to slump over to the other side of the bed. Hannah and his eyes met. Both of their chests were heaving from the adrenaline of the kill.

Just before Dexter could even react to the moment, she sprung up out of the bed and ran into the bathroom. He looked puzzled by her reaction and quickly got up to follow her. Hannah was on the bathroom floor with her face in the toilet bowl. Her bloody handprints were smeared on the yellow colored porcelain as she began to vomit.

_"Not the reaction I expected. Maybe she's just shook up from being attacked. Or Perhaps this kill brought back some unpleasant memories from her time with Wayne Randall. I could never forget the queasy feeling of finding the blood bath my brother, Brian, had left for me to trigger the memories of our mother's murder."_

"Are you okay?" He finally said as he crouched down next to her.

"I'll be fine. It's just that smell of the blood." She explained before falling back against the bathroom wall. She was still breathing heavy.

"I'm glad I came when I did."

"Yeah..." Hannah agreed with a small chuckle.

"As soon as I'm able to dispose of the body, we have to leave. I need to get you as far away from Miami as possible."

"Because of this?" She inquired nonchalantly, holding up her bloody hands.

"Not just that, my sister is making finding you her new mission in life and I don't want you going back to prison. I'll get you far away from here, somewhere Deb can't find you."

"Argentina?" She questioned with a smirk to show her lack of sincerity before she continued on a more serious note:

"Dexter, we never had a chance to talk."

Hannah then sighed before licking her lips like she was getting ready to tell him something important.

"I know..." He breathed feeling tears beginning to well up in his eyes at the thought of losing her again. "But I think talking will only make saying goodbye harder."

"There's still something I really do think I have to tell you, but I've been afraid to." She admitted bringing her legs up closed to her chest like as if she was a timid little girl up against the wall.

"What is it?" Dexter muttered narrowing his eyes. He noticed her change in demeanor and could only wonder what she was going to tell him next.

Tears began to fill her eyes once again as she contemplated whether or not to tell him what she had been keeping to herself the past few days. She was extremely hesitant to confide in him. The fear of rejection and disappointment held her back for a few moments before she was finally able to blurt it out:

"I'm pregnant."


	3. Blood Never Lies

**A/N: I apologize for the delay of getting this next installment completed. Graduate school is quite the time suck. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing the last two episodes, and I hope you enjoy this one just as much.**

* * *

**All characters in this fic are property of Showtime.**

**Season 8, Episode 3: Blood Never Lies**

"Pregnant?"

Dexter heard himself breath that single word while the magnitude of it was still sinking in. His eyes were wide. Just like when Rita had announced Harrison's impending arrival, he felt blindsided.

Hannah was studying his face carefully. Her bloody fingers began to fidget nervously. She could not tell how he felt about her confession. She was uneasy. Her mind citing back to her husband rejection of their unborn baby. She made him pay for that. Was the nightmare of her past repeating itself yet again? There was a moment of silence before she decided to reply to him.

"I think I am. I've been late as of the end of December. I was going to tell you on Christmas, but then after everything went to shit..." Hannah trailed off, lowering her eyes as she frowned.

She had played the turn of events over and over again in her mind. Dexter taking her to task over her poisoning Debra's bottle of water had been the cause of their first fight. Hannah had told him to decide what he wanted, and when he had arrived at her nursery on Christmas Day, she had thought he had chosen her and their future together. She had been ready to tell him about her possible pregnancy when she saw that look of betrayal in his eyes. Her heart was shattered and all he could say was that he was sorry before she was led away.

"You should have told me there was even a possibility when I came to see you in prison. Why did you wait until now?" Dex asked back narrowing his eyes.

Hannah scoffed. She used the back of one of her hands to wipe away the tears from her face. She then shook her head before going on to explain:

"You had me arrested. The last thing on my mind was telling you that there was a possibility I was pregnant. Besides, you had made it very clear that there was no future for us. You were going to let me spend the rest of my life behind bars. I did what I had to do to escape."

"And then you left a black orchid on my doorstep. Am I suppose to believe that was a parting gift?"

A corner of her mouth pulled taunt. She smirked at him; surprised that he had not figured out the significance of the plant that she had particularly chosen to leave for him to find.

"The black orchid: symbol of absolute power and fertility." muttered Hannah. Her words were followed by a quick eyebrow raise.

"Absolute power? I guess you feel pretty powerful after being able to fake a seizure to escape custody." Morgan commented, returning a smirk. He was going on what Deb had told him about her escape, since Hannah hadn't filled him in on the details.

She sighed, biting gently on the side of her lip before she opened her mouth to correct him. She spoke in a soft voice that sounded hesitant to reveal the truth.

"I didn't fake it..."

Her admission caused Dexter to shoot her a look of disbelief. His mouth parted slightly while he began to wonder what had caused a seizure at such an opportune time. Hannah could see him trying to make sense of it. She decided to enlighten him with the details of her planned escape.

"It was all part of the plan that I set up with Arlene. I gave her detailed instructions on how much aconite to put in a capsule and she slipped it in my hand at my arraignment at the court house. It was just enough to trigger the seizure."

Hannah's account of events caused Dexter's jaw to drop even further. He couldn't believe that a woman who believed she might be carrying a child would intentionally poison herself in an attempt to escape.

"You trusted a drug addict to measure the amount of poison you put into your body? That's completely crazy, weren't you worried about what effect that could of had on the baby if you are pregnant? Not to mention if Arlene would have given you too much, you would have died." Dex pointed out in a low voice that was underlined with a bit of anger.

His judgment of her decision caused Hannah to lean forward and sneer while defending the action she had taken.

"I had no other choice! It was the only chance I had of escaping and I took it! And if I am pregnant, you know I'd never be able to keep a baby while behind bars! I was willing to take the risk!"

Dexter drew in a deep breath and then quickly moved to crouch in front of her before making his rebuttal.

"You would have had other options of you would have told me."

Hannah closed her eyes for a moment, when she opened them, they darted away from his gaze. How quickly he had forgotten their conversation in the visiting area of the prison.

"You made it very clear that day you came to visit that Debra came before any future we could have together. Having a baby with me would only come between you and your sister. You chose your sister over me, and I was afraid that if I told you, you'd want me to get rid of it. I won't do that, Dexter." She confessed as her blue eyes began to glaze over with tears.

Dex was surprised by her words. He exhaled, blinking his eyes a few times looking away from her as he thought about the best way to respond.

"I would never ask you to do that. I'm not Jake. You know that." He whispered back before returning his gaze to her.

Hannah pursed her lips slightly while a tear began to stream down her face.

"Do I?" She breathed back with an eyebrow raise, "You also once said that you would never land me in jail like Wayne."

"How could I ever foresee what was going to happen between you and Deb? Giving her the evidence to arrest you was one of the hardest things I ever had to do...Next to killing my brother." admitted Dexter, feeling himself getting choked up.

Hannah's mouth parted open in response to him confiding in her that he had murdered his own brother. Her brilliant blue eyes shifted away for a moment before returning focus on him.

Dex frowned as his eyes widened. He couldn't believe that he just brought up Brian. He hadn't thought of him in over a year and now the conversation was surely going to shift from talking about a possible pregnancy to the murder of big brother Biney.

"Why did you kill him?" She inquired softly.

Hannah was, of course, curious rather than horrified to learn that her lover had taken out his own sibling. Too bad he wasn't for doing the same to his sister.

Dex closed his eyes and was about to divulge how he had to sacrifice his brother, Brian, for his foster sister, Debra, when Hannah amazingly answered herself:

"Because of Deb?"

Dexter's eyes connected with hers, slowly he began to nod his head. It was amazing how easily she could figure him out. She understood him and what he had been through in his life. Before even thinking about it, Dex heard himself begin to explain why his brother had to die by his hand.

"My older brother, Brian, was the Ice Truck Killer. We had been separated after witnessing our mother's murder, but he found me. Brian accepted my need to kill, because he had it too. He wanted me to be free like him. The freedom to kill whomever I wanted without a code. Brian tried to prove his point by attempting to kill Deb, so I put him down..." Dexter trailed off as he began to get teary eyed. He quickly began to try and shake off his emotions.

She reflected a look of sadness before she slowly closed the distance between them, bringing her forehead to his.

"I killed Biney, my real brother, who I was born in blood with, for my adopted sister who will never fully understand or accept me." Dexter heard himself confess in a mutter as tears streamed down his face.

His thoughts and feelings about murdering his brother all those years ago were rising to the surface, and spilling out of his mouth.

Hannah instinctively sat back after hearing for the first time that Debra Morgan was not Dexter's biological sibling. She couldn't believe that he could have so much profound loyalty to a woman who wasn't even his blood, regardless of whether or not he grew up with her. With her newfound knowledge of Brian, she now knew that she wasn't the first person that Dex had to sacrifice being with for the sake of Deb. Perhaps she should've considered herself lucky that he had put her in jail instead of killing her.

"Dexter, if you know that Deb will never accept who you are, then why do you keep putting her before your chances to be happy? Why do you feel like you owe her that if she's not even really your sibling?" challenged Hannah as she looked her lover directly in the eyes.

Dex let out a deep sigh before bringing both of his hands to his face. He needed to get himself together. With everything he had on his plate right now, this was the most inopportune time to be exploring his complicated feelings about his older brother and how he had killed him for Debra. Hannah was asking all the right questions. They were the same ones that were now swirling around in his mind. His head was pounding and he knew he had to get out of there.

"Stay here and get yourself cleaned up. Do not leave this motel room." He finally muttered, getting to his feet.

"Where are you going?" She immediately asked him with curiosity, standing up to meet him.

"The closest store to get supplies. I'll dismember the body right here in the room then wait until nightfall to move the six hefty bags out to my car."

"Can you get me something to eat while you're out? I'm starving." requested Hannah. She looked to not be phased at all by the gruesome prospect of having to witness him disposing of the body. Despite the fact that she had killed her attacker, her hunger had not wavered.

"Yeah, sure. I'll be back as soon as I can." He breathed before making his exit.

Upon exiting the motel room, Dexter took a quick moment to go into the manager's office and turn the business sign over to 'Closed". He also did away with the manager's hat and the bags of snacks. These items were the only evidence of the struggle outside and they would no longer be a problem as they were now inside the motel room. Harry was standing right outside room four when Dex reemerged.

_Harry: "What just happened in there?"_

_"Which part? The killing of the motel manager, Hannah telling me that she's pregnant, or me letting it slip to Hannah that I killed my brother for my foster sister?"_

Dexter immediately began to walk toward his Ford Escape while imaginary Harry followed after him.

_Harry: "Do I have to pick one? This just proves that you should have left Hannah alone once you found out she had escaped. It's obvious now that the orchid she left you was to manipulate you into finding her. Son, you don't even know if she really is pregnant."_

_"It makes sense that she is. We were together practically every night leading up to when she tried to kill Deb. I can understand why she was afraid to tell me. The last time she was put into this situation she was rejected by her husband and miscarried."_

Dexter climbed into the drive seat of his SUV. As he brought his keys to the ignition and cranked it, Harry got into the passenger seat and continued to speak to him:

_Harry: "You're assuming, Dexter. A lot of women fake a pregnancy in an attempt to hold onto a relationship that will never work out. Why not Hannah? Don't let your feelings for her cloud your judgment. You need to be certain that she's telling the truth. You should pick up a pregnancy test and watch her take it. It's the only way to be sure moving forward."_

Dex let out a deep sigh as he griped his steering wheel, letting his father's words sink in. Harry did have a point. He did need to have proof that Hannah was carrying his child. Whether or not it was so would directly affect his course of action.

_" A qualitative blood panel would be able to detect if there is a presence of the human chorionic gonadotropin hormone in her blood. My kit is in the back of the Escape, I can get a sample from her and test it in the lab. I'll know by the end of the day."_

Dexter drove to a Large Mart he had seen that was located right off the main highway. Luckily for him, the parking lot was sparse thanks to the many good citizens of Florida who were working.

_"Large Mart. "We'll have whatever you need at a discount price, guaranteed", so the slogan says. "_

Dex wasted no time wheeling a cart up and down the aisles, collecting the essentials: hefty bags, plastic sheets, rubber gloves, smock, new bed sheets, and a Black & Decker electric handsaw. And of course, he then began to fill the cart with some normal everyday items so that his purchases didn't scream "I just killed someone and need to clean it up".

Dexter felt completely clueless about what size clothing to buy for Hannah. He had never bought clothing for his wife, Rita, let alone any other female. With a look of confusion, he held up a pair of jeans and a simple white t-shirt to figure out if it would fit her. He shrugged slightly before tossing both into the cart along with a few other articles of clothing.

"Find everything alright today, sir?" The clerk asked while he began scanning each one of the items at checkout.

"Yup." piped Dex as he flashed a fake smile while reaching into his back pocket for his wallet.

"Got a messy project you're working on?" The employee then asked, noting the plastic sheets and garbage bags before bagging them.

"You have no idea." Morgan replied with a smirk.

* * *

Miami Metro's homicide division was bustling with activity. The double homicide from the crime scene earlier that morning was everyone's top priority, well, everyone except Debra. She had herself sequestered in her office while doing her best to turn up a lead on Hannah McKay.

"Bueno, asegúrese de que nadie los toca el coche, vamos a estar allí. Muchas gracias." Angel said into the office phone receiver before hanging up.

"What's up, do we have a lead?" Quinn asked the Sergeant when he saw that the call had ended.

"Sí, Dexter was right on the money when he told us to reach out to the salvage yards in the area that have been previously investigated for connections grand theft auto. I just spoke to the owner of one of the local yards, Julio Ramirez, who received an automobile with the same plates, make, and model, as the one registered to the victim, Audrey Jenner."

"That's good news, chances are that the guy who fenced the car is the killer. This is the break we needed. Should we tell Deb?" questioned Joey as he got up from his desk.

Batista glanced over the Lieutenant's office before looking back at Detective Quinn.

"No, I'm going to take on the responsibility and head this investigation. You saw how Deb reacted at the crime scene. She's been an emotional mess since Maria was murdered."

"So much for retirement, huh?"

"I'd rather be here right now anyway, it keeps my mind off of Maria's murder. A shark has to keep swimming to stay alive, socio."

" Do you need me to head down to the salvage yard?" Joseph offered.

"No, I'm on it. It's better that I deal with the owner, since you barely know any Espaniol. I'll take Masuka with me to do a forensic sweep on the car. Do me a favor and check in on Deb."

"You do know that she's just going to end up tell me to go fuck myself and to get out of her office, right?" Joey commented, pointing his thumb in the direction of the Lieutenant office.

"Wouldn't be the first time. Just try and talk to her, okay? The two of you have a history, maybe she will confide in you." encouraged Angel, giving a swift pat to Quinn's arm.

Joey sighed and then gave a nod. He reached behind him, scratching the back of his head while watching Sergeant Batista walk off to go and grab Vince Masuka from his lab station.

Quinn decided that there was no sense and putting off going to Debra's office. Upon approaching the door, he had to stop himself for simply walking in. Debra had been promoted to Lieutenant over a year ago, yet he still sometimes had trouble remembering that she was his superior. He knocked on the door and awaiting a response from inside. When he heard nothing after a few moments, he opened the door and walk inside.

Lieutenant Morgan looked away from her computer screen and over at Quinn the moment he entered her office.

"You ever heard of knocking, Quinn?" Deb hissed, giving him a look to show how annoyed she was by him interrupting her work.

"Uh, I did. What are you doing in here? You missed this morning's briefing." Joey questioned, he placed both hands on her desk and leaned in, awaiting her reply.

"I'm sure Batista handled it just fine. I'm busting my ass to chase down a lead on Hannah McKay. I stopped by Arlene Shram's house after the crime scene this morning and she refused to talk to me. I guaran-fucking-tee you that she's been in contact with Hannah. I think I have enough probable cause to get a judge to sign off on allowing me access to Shram's cell phone records." explained Debra pointing at her computer screen before continuing:

"I'm going to nail that bitch to the wall like she's on a fucking crucifix." Deb promised looking down at a picture of Hannah's mug shot from her arrest that was in her police file.

"Hannah McKay, the woman you accused of the double homicide from this morning?" asked Joseph with a smirk causing Morgan to narrow her eyes.

"What's your fucking point, Joey?"

"Batista and Masuka are following up a lead on the case. Turns out the killer took victims' car to a salvage yard to fence it for quick cash. There goes your theory of Hannah murdering the mother and child for a getaway car." He chuckled folding his arms.

Debra's mouth gaped open. She used both hands to tuck strains of her brown hair behind her ears. It was quite clear now that she was wrong about the murders. She would have to accept that. What she wasn't willing to do was forget the fact that Hannah was on the run. She had been the one to arrest her for the murder of Sal. It was only right that she take on the responsibility of putting her back behind bars. Not to mention the fact that it was Hannah who tried to kill her.

"So she didn't commit the double homicide, that doesn't change the fact that she's a killer. I'm not going to give up until I find her and her murdering ass in back behind bars." promised Debra as she resumed her focus back on her computer screen.

"You're kind of taking this a little too personal, don't ya think? I mean, she was your brother's girl. I would think you would want to let someone else handle it out of respect for him and what he's going through." Quinn pointed out. Ever since Dexter saved his ass after the Stan Liddy murder he had been accused of, he felt like he owed him.

"Respect for Dexter?" She scoffed slightly with a forced laugh. How fucked up was that? She wanted to scream in his face that she had done more for her brother than he could ever imagine, but she had to refrain from doing so.

"Yeah, I've got a lot of respect for a lab geek who was able to land a woman as hot as Hannah McKay. I'm just saying." joked Joey cracking a smile while shrugging his shoulders.

Deb shot Detective Quinn her best "eat shit and die" face before she opened her mouth to comment on what had been his lame excuse at humor.

"God, your such a fucking guy! All you bastards ever do is think with your dicks, meanwhile, innocent people are getting killed..."

Her words trailed off as she began to lose her composure. The fact that seemingly every guy in Miami was enamored with Hannah McKay's beauty, despite her deadly reputation, infuriated Debra. Unlike the male officers of Miami Metro, she knew exactly what Hannah was: a liar and a killer who would come after her and her family.

Quinn's smile quickly faded when he saw her begin to cry. He immediately began to feel sympathetic to the woman who was not only his superior, but was also his former lover who he had once asked to marry him.

"Deb, I'm sorry, I was just kidding around. I didn't mean to upset you." He apologized in a voice that was quite sincere.

Joey moved toward her, going around to her side of the desk. Gently, he placed his hand on her back causing her to finally respond to him.

"I'm just so fucking stressed out." sobbed Morgan while she tried her best to stifle her tears. She didn't want to give her co-workers anymore of a reason to think that she wasn't fit for the Lieutenant shield.

"Well, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here for you."

Debra wiped away her tears and sighed. As nice as his offer was, there was no way she could confide in him. The burden of the murder she had committed was hers and hers alone. Her brother was the only other person that knew about it. Dexter was the one who she should be able to turn to for support; but where the hell was he?

"Thanks, but I'll be fine. You should get back to work." She whispered finally getting her emotion in check.

Quinn gave a nod before taking his leave. It was when she was alone again in her office that she reached into the top right draw of her desk and pulled out her bottle of pills, this was how she was going to get through the day.

* * *

Dexter had to knock on the motel room door a few times before Hannah answered it. She was wearing only a towel that was wrapped around her torso as she stepped out of the doorway and allowed him room to enter.

"I hope you don't mind fast food for lunch. I didn't think to pick up any food while I was at Large Mart." Dex commented setting the paper bag and drink down onto the small table that was up against the window that was covered by the drapes.

"God no, at this point I'll eat anything." She quickly replied moving to remove the food from the bag.

Hannah immediately sat down at the table and began eating while Dex started carrying in the bags of his purchases and his forensic kit from the SUV. Despite the fact that there was still a large dead body lying in the bed only a few feet away, she had no trouble devouring her meal.

"I bought you a few pairs of new clothing. Hopefully it all fits. So when you get finished eating, you can get dressed. I'll need what you were wearing."

"Okay, thanks." She said with a mouthful of food. A quick sip of her drink and she swallowed before speaking again.

"What's your blood spatter kit doing in here? I didn't think you needed that to get rid of a dead body." inquired Hannah, giving a nod toward where he had set his kit on the carpet floor.

"I've got my spray bottle of Luminol in there. It will help me ensure that I don't miss any blood during the clean up. The last thing we need is for this to become a crime scene." Dexter explained while taking that moment to open up his kit and put on a pair of latex gloves.

He dug around and then removed a packaged syringed, needle, and a plastic test tube. McKay immediately noticed the items and it caused her to narrow her eyes. Before she could question him, he gave a response.

"I also need to get a blood sample from you. I'm going to test it in the lab for the pregnancy hormone, HCG. I can get the results by the end of the day."

"You know, most people just buy one of those pee sticks." She mentioned with a smile. She then took another sip from her drink's straw.

"We're definitely not most people." Dex muttered while tearing open the plastic packaging. . He inserted the sterile needle into place before speaking again.

"I'm the blood guy, remember?"

His brown eyes focused intently on the complete syringe he now had in his grasp.

_"The syringe: just holding it in my hand gives me a rush, as if it's filled with Etorphine, and I'm about to immobilize my prey from the shadows. I have to remind myself that I'm not on the hunt."_

"Can we get this over with?" Hannah asked somewhat impatiently. She wasn't thrill with the fact that she was going to have a needle jabbed into her arm.

Dexter broke his gaze and then nodded in his lover's direction. He bent back down to retrieve a disposable tourniquet from his kit.

"You really have everything in that kit, don't you?" She commented with an eyebrow raise, holding out her left arm out to him.

"Always be prepared." Morgan said with a smile as he wrapped the band around her arm. "I'll be quick."

"I hope you do a better job drawing blood than you do performing a DNA swab.": joked Hannah as her mouth stretched into a smile. Her playful smartass remark made him chuckle.

She winced slightly as the needle punctured the vein at her antecubital. Her blue eyes focused intently as the syringe began to fill with her blood. Dexter's mouth gaped open slightly and he breathed in. He too was watching intently as the tube of the syringe became completely red. Slowly, he backed the needle out of her skin causing a red dot of blood to form from the puncture site.

"Here, use this to put soft pressure on it to stop the bleeding." Dex directed handing her one of the napkins that came with her meal.

Hannah followed his instructions and she watched as he deposited her blood into the plastic test tube before capping it off and putting everything back into to the kit.

"You should get dressed now so you can leave the room. It's going to get very messy." He warned while beginning to unpack his plastic sheets and hefty bags.

"I can help. It is, after all, my mess you're cleaning up." Hannah pointed out, getting out of the chair.

She let the towel drop to the floor and then began putting on the clothing that Dex had purchased for her.

"It's going to be pretty gruesome. The human body can be quite disgusting when you are dismembering it; the smell of death and decay that is expelled into the air when you begin to dissect."

"I think I can handle it." She commented back as she finished getting dressed.

Dexter had a game plan. Luckily for him, the bloody mess from the body had been contained to the bed. With the help of Hannah, he laid the plastic sheets down over the shag carpeting in preparation of moving the body to the floor as well as hung the plastic up against the wall to contain spatter. Dex donned his smock and rubber gloves before he expertly rolled the large man onto the plastic. Due to the fact that he hadn't bought Hannah any clean up attire, she sat in a chair simply watching him work. Immediately upon rolling the body onto its back, Dexter noticed that the knife was missing.

"Where's the knife?"

"I took care of that." admitted Hannah, folding her arms in front of her.

"Keeping the murder weapon is not a smart move. Must I remind you about the Sal Price pen?" He muttered in a low voice while looking in her direction.

"I'm not getting rid of the knife. I've had it since I was a kid. I cleaned it, there's no blood left on it. Besides, there's no crime if there's no body." She told him raising her eyebrows.

Dexter silently nodded in agreement. Hannah had brought the discussion about the knife to a close and now it was time to get things tided up.

_"I need to work quickly, the quality of the blood sample will only last a few hours without proper refrigeration."_

The electric handsaw began to whirl and the red mist began to spray. He expertly sectioned the body parts before placing them all in the black hefty bags. The bloody sheets smock and gloves, Hannah's clothing, and all of the plastic found its way into its own hefty. All that was left for him to do was to spray the Luminal and clean up any blood that had seeped onto the mattress. When he was satisfied with his job, he commissioned Hannah to put the new plain white sheets on the bed. Dex tied off all the bags and stacked them neatly in a corner of the motel room. They would be there waiting for him to take them for a night boat ride out to sea.

"I'll be back later tonight. I'm going to take the motel key so I can let myself in, in case you are asleep." He told Hannah.

Dexter approached where she was seated and bent down to place a kiss on her forehead. She smiled because of his loving gesture, bringing her hands up to his face before she spoke to him.

"I'm glad you found me. You are slowly redeeming yourself for turning me into your sister with everything that you've done for me since I escaped. And I know how hard it must have been for you to tell me about your brother."

"I want to be honest with you about all of my darkest secrets. You know that you are the only person in this world that I don't have to hide anything from. I don't want you to have to leave." Dexter admitted in a whisper, bringing his forehead to hers. Hannah closed her eyes before breathing a reply:

"I don't want to go anywhere either."

They both let out a long exhale in unison before their mouths met for one passionate kiss that ended as quickly as it started. With his kit in tow, Dexter left the motel and headed back to Miami Metro.

* * *

The elevator door chimed before its doors opened. Dexter stepped out casually with his work satchel hanging from his shoulder. His kit he was carrying in his right hand as he navigated his way to his lab room. Joey Quinn saw his entrance and immediately followed after him. Dex was keenly aware that Joseph was walking after him.

"Dex, you have a minute?"

Being verbally called out caused Morgan to stop dead in his tracks just before making it to the forensics station.

_"Not the best time for socializing, Quinn."_

Dexter turned around and put on his best fake smile as he tipped his head as a way to inquire what it was that Joey had to speak to him about.

"Hey, I just wanted to give you a heads up. Deb is really gunning for your girl, Hannah. She's trying to issue a warrant for a judge to sign that would give her access to Arlene Shram's cell phone records. You might want to try and talk to her. She seems like something is really bothering her. She wouldn't talk to me about it. I just feel like it's something more than Laguerta's death."

_"Arlene's cell phone records. If Deb gets a hold of that it won't take her long to trace the payphone to the motel Hannah is staying at. I'm running out of time."_

"Okay, thanks Quinn. I'll talk to her." Dex replied in a mutter before walking on at a quicker pace.

He was almost home free when Masuka looked up from a microscope and made an attempt to talk to him. But Morgan wasn't having any of it.

"Not now, Vince." He piped dodging quickly into his lab before Masuka could rebuttal by saying whatever perverted quip he wanted to say.

_"Peace and quiet is what I need. Who knows how much time I have before Debra gets the go ahead to investigate further into Hannah's whereabouts. I need to move fast."_

He closed the shades cutting himself off from the rest of the homicide division before he began the process of testing Hannah's blood sample. Working methodically but with speed, he completed the necessary procedure before feeding the sample into lab equipment. It was going to take several minutes before yielding a result. He could move onto his next order of business while waiting.

Dex presented a driver's license from his pants' pocket. It had belonged to the motel manager that he and Hannah had dispatched. Keeping the identification was by no means a trophy for Hannah, it was, however, a way for Dexter to find out just who he had been in society. Would a family be filing a missing person's report? These things had to be considered as a potential problem for him and Hannah. He began to type the information into the computer database and then hit enter. Harry appeared next to his son. He leaned forward and stared at the computer screen as Dex began to read aloud:

_"Buddy Wilkins, listed residence in Pinewood, Florida. Unmarried and lives alone with no family or any next of kin listed."_

Dexter heightened the search parameters to outside of the state and raised his eyebrows by what he found.

_"Originally from Allgood, Alabama. He served over ten years in the Holman Correctional Facility for two counts of kidnapping and sexual assault."_

_Harry: "At least this time Hannah's victim was a deserving one. And it doesn't seem that anyone is going to be looking for him."_

_"One less thing I have to worry about."_

Satisfied with his search results, Dexter then sent the driver's license through the industrial shredder. It wasn't a moment too soon, because Vince decided to make another attempt to try and talk to him. Dex cleared his computer desktop before Masuka rattled off the information he had been so desperate to tell him earlier.

"Dude, I know you don't want to be bothered, but it's about the double homicide from this morning. Hold off on doing the blood report, because we caught a huge break thank to your tip about the salvage yards. We found the victim's car. I spent all afternoon going over it with a fine tooth comb. I've got a partial print and get this, blood on a napkin that had fallen between the front seat and the console." Masuka explained.

"Wow, that's some break. I'm guessing the blood was from the killer and not one of the victims? Did you cross match the print and the blood with our database yet? Any matches?"

"You bet your sack I did. I got a hit for one Pedro Lopez-Fernandez. Blood never lies, bitches. And because I am Vince Masuka, the fucking Rain Man of forensics-"

"Rain Man? Wasn't that movie about an autistic savant?" Dex asked interrupting Vince midsentence.

"Yeah, what, don't see the resemblance? Huhuhuhuhuh."

"Oh yeah, kind of, I guess." chuckled Dexter before Masuka continued.

"I suggested that Batista call the closest pawn shops in relation to the salvage yard and Fernandez' apartment and 'bam"! We've got a record of Pedro pawning a wedding ring matching the description of ring that was stolen from Audrey Jenner post-mortem."

"Rock solid evidence, that's good news."

"Hell yeah, solid as a ten inch strap-on in an amateur transsexual orgy fest. I already finished my forensic report and cataloged the evidence in the lock-up. I'm sure you will want to look it over for your spatter report."

"Okay, great, thanks. I'll definitely do that." Morgan replied with a smile. His eyes shifted toward the lab door to signal to Masuka that the conversation was finished.

Once he was alone again in the lab, he went back to machine where he had inputted Hannah's blood sample. A few button presses, and the results were sent to his computer. He pulled up the report and immediately began to scroll through the blood panel. His lips parted while his brown eyes focused on the listed hCG hormone level in her blood.

_"Blood never lies. Hannah was right, she's pregnant. Her human chorionic gonadotropin level is significantly high. I can't send her away, not now."_

Harry appeared again behind his son. He placed one of his hands up against his head to show his disappointment with the news.

_Harry: "I was praying that she was lying. This is going to do nothing but get in the way of you doing what's best for you, Debra, and Harrison. Hannah's a serial killer and fugitive from the law. What kind of a mother would she make?"_

Dexter let out a long sigh. His eyes were glazed over with tears as the reality of the situation was beginning to set in.

_"What kind of a father am I? I'm a killer too. And 'this' is Harrison's little brother or sister, your grandson or granddaughter."_

Harry placed his hand on his son's shoulder before replying sympathetically:

_Harry: "I don't mind to come across as uncaring, Dex. But you do have to realize that this can't work. You can't have a family with Hannah like you did with Rita. She's facing a murder, not to mention additional charges for escaping."_

_"The only thing the police have on her is that pen. Without the evidence they will have no choice but to drop the murder charge."_

_Harry: "Are you seriously even considering stealing that pen from the evidence locker? That would be an entirely stupid move, Dexter. Your sister would know immediately that you had sabotaged the case so Hannah could walk. She would never stand for that."_

_"I'm not suggesting that I make the pen disappear. The cap of the pen is where Hannah put the aconite. Replace the cap and you have a pen that when tested will come back negative for traces of poison. I have a reason to be there, Masuka just gave me my reason for signing into the lock-up."_

_Harry: "But what about the fact that she escaped police custody? Nothing says guilty more than a prison break."_

_"Hannah had an actual seizure. I'm sure her lawyer will be able to find a doctor to cooperate on a theory that she woke up disoriented in the hospital with no idea why she was there tied to the bed."_

_Harry: "You think you easily have all the answers, but what are you going to say to Deb when she finds out you are back together with Hannah after you help her beat the charges?"_

_"One step at a time, Dad. I will deal with that when I have to."_

* * *

By the time dusk was approaching, Hannah had eaten every one of the small bags of chips that Dexter had brought back into the room. The demon of hunger had returned to her once again and she began to contemplate venturing back to the snack machine. She had no idea what time Dexter was going to return to her, so it behooved her to eat something now.

Hannah left the room unlocked. Walking with a purpose, she traveled toward the manager's office where she noticed the 'closed' sign on the door. She smiled. Dexter Morgan really did think of everything. The sound of the payphone's shrill ring caused her to walk passed the snack dispenser. She hesitated for a moment, not knowing if she should answer it. It could be Dexter.

"Hello?" She said after lifting the phone from the receiver.

"Hannah? Oh my God, I've been trying to get a hold of you all day! I was about to give up on reaching you from this number!"

McKay knew Arlene Shram's voice immediately. She let out an exhale shifting her weight from one foot to the other while standing inside the booth.

"You shouldn't be contacting me. For all you know, your phone could be tapped." scolded Hannah.

"That skanky cop came by my house this morning. I didn't even answer the door, but she knew I was there. She went on and on how she knew that I knew where you were and that she was going to find you. She said that I'll be charged with aiding and abetting a fugitive. Hannah, I can't go to jail, I have my kids to think about!"

"Arlene, listen to me, you are not going to jail. I'm going to figure something out. In the meantime, you continue to say nothing. Do you understand?"

There was a pause on the line compelling Hannah to give her friend more reassurance.

"You trust me, right?"

"Yeah...But you have to do something soon.."

"I know, just stay strong, and from now on, don't call this number again." McKay instructed before hanging the wired black phone back up on its hook.

Something did have to be done. The difference was that this time, she had Dexter to help her make her next move. It was a strange feeling to know that she had a man in her life that loved her and wanted to protect her. After Wayne Randall and then Jake Kirkwood, she had become used to only counting on herself. Hannah was ambivalent. A part of her felt safe and protected with Dexter, while she also felt like she should be skeptical about where his heart truly was. He had thrown her over for his adoptive sister before, and it could happen again. Her past had taught her that nothing was for certain.

* * *

_"I'm getting back to the motel much later than I wanted to. A quick dinner with her and Harrison and I'm off to sneak into the night. Six hefty bags and my pregnant fugitive girlfriend await my return."_

The Ford Escape's headlights cut through the darkness as he backed it up into the deserted motel. He opened the back hatch and then the stow and go compartment. Instead of knocking, Dexter used the key to gain access to room number 4. He found Hannah lying asleep on top of the made bed with several empty snack bags lying on the bedside table.

_"Hardly a substantial meal for the woman who is growing my child inside of her. I should have remembered to bring her dinner. I'll stop on the way back from dropping off Mr. Wilkins and get her something. That's what a loving boyfriend would do after tossing the chopped up body of his girlfriend's victim into the ocean."_

Dex moved quickly and quietly, carrying two hefty bags at a time out to the SUV. After making the three trips, he closed everything up and was on his way to his marina. When Dexter arrived at the solitary marina, he wasted little time loading his cargo into the Slice of Life that as docked nearby. After untying the boat from the dock, he started the motor and eased the throttle. The boat sliced through the Miami water like a knife through butter. It was a nice night to be out at sea. Using his boat's navigation, he found his dumping ground where his "playmates" would be swept away by the Gulf stream's current.

"Happy trails, Buddy." He said aloud with a smirk when he tossed the last hefty bag overboard.

Morgan closed his eyes and paused. The rocking of the boat on the waves was soothing. He took a moment to take a deep breath of the ocean air, before he reached into his pocket. When he opened his eyes, they focused on the plastic pen cap that was impregnated with aconite that he held in his hand. He had followed through, replacing it in the evidence locker. It was the only evidence that state of Florida had on Hannah. Harry appeared next to him, he too was looking at the cap.

_Harry: "It's not too late, Dexter. You still have time to put it back without anyone being the wiser. You don't have to do this for Hannah just because she's pregnant."_

_"I'm not just doing it for Hannah. I'm doing it for me too. I want a life with her and Harrison, and the new baby. A real family, not camouflage like what I had with Rita. My life isn't a cover anymore, it's real."_

_Harry: "Listen to yourself, you're only thinking about what you want! What about Deb? Choosing to be with Hannah is going to destroy your sister in the process! I can't let you do that."_

Despite his imaginary foster father's anger, Dex wasn't fazed at all. Slowly, he stretched his arm out over the side of the boat.

_"Just as I am no longer a slave to a 'dark passenger', I am not bound to do what my father would want. I am, in fact, the most typical type of monster: the selfish human being who wants to protect his loved one and children at all costs."_

Dexter felt his hand release the plastic cap. It fell into the ocean, barely making a ripple in the tide. He watched as it lingered for a few seconds at the surface before disappearing into the dark depths below.

Morgan took a staggered breath into his chest while his eyes continued to focus on the waves. He was waiting for Harry's voice to pierce his mind, but it never came. He was standing alone on the boat again. The only sound was that of the waves hitting against the boat. And then, his ears picked up something else. Dexter's eyes widened when he heard the sound of someone clapping directly behind him. Instantaneously, he knew it was Brian. He had appeared to him in the same fashion when he had avenged Brother Sam's murder. Dex slowly turned around to confirm his thoughts.

Brian Moser stood on the opposite side of the boat with a broad smile on his face. His clapping ceased before his voice broke Dexter's silence.

_Brian: "I'm proud of you, little brother."_

* * *

******All characters in this fic are property of Showtime.**


	4. Untouchable

**A/N: I'm happy to posting a new installment. This turned out to be a long one. Hopefully you guys will find it enjoyable. As always, please be sure to review.**

* * *

******All characters in this fic are property of Showtime.**

**Season 8, Episode 4: Untouchable**

_"Brian, my brother. I haven't seen him since I spared Jonah's life over a year ago in Nebraska. Our ill-fated road trip ending with him disappearing into the night as I drove back to my life in Miami."_

His imaginary sibling approached him, placing a hand on his shoulder before speaking to his internal thoughts.

_Brian: "Just look at you now, unafraid to go against what Harry Morgan would want you to be. Finally, you are beginning to embrace who you are and what you truly want. It's the freedom that I always wanted for you, Dexter."_

Dex stared out into the dark ocean while feeling his brother's hand squeeze his shoulder to further drive home his approval of his actions.

_"Is it? As I recall, you wanted me to go on a mindless killing spree just to watch the blood flow. I hope you're not expecting that of me now. Just because I'm going against Harry doesn't mean that I'm throwing away the life I built. I want to add to it with Hannah, not destroy it."_

Brian smiled and let out a chuckle before sitting down on the side of the boat with his arms folded.

_Brian: "You don't think I know that, little brother? Just because you haven't seen me in over a year doesn't mean that I haven't been with you since. How else do you think you came up with a plan for Hannah to beat her charges so quickly?"_

Moser used an index finger to tap against the side of his own head to show that he was the master mind behind Dexter's plan to help Hannah. Brian had never left his brother's side, yet it had been Harry's view that would win out to dictate Dex's actions.

_"Impressive."_

Dexter smiled slightly at the idea that he had come up with the plan to aid his girlfriend thanks to his dead older brother. The idea of the preverbal devil and angel on each of his shoulders was quite comical when he stopped to think about it.

_Brian: "In fact, if you would have listened to big brother, Brian, more often than you would never turned in the woman you claim to love so deeply for the selfish and neurotic Lieutenant Morgan. Honestly Dexter, I don't know why you didn't let Hannah finish what she started. You took care of Daddy McKay, she takes care of foster sister, Deb; Killing in the name of love, it brings a tear to my eye."_

Dexter's smile quickly faded as he moved away from his brother's hand before muttering a reply:

_"Well you better wipe that tear away, because it's not going to happen. I took away Deb's evidence against Hannah, she's no longer a threat. I'll make sure Hannah knows that."_

Satisfied by his reply to his brother, Morgan sat down at the helm of his boat and fired up the engine. With a broad smile, Brian took a seat in the back of the boat, his arms stretched out across the length of the back cushion as Dexter began to turn the boat back around.

_Brian: "You, Hannah, and Deb: one big happy family, huh?"_

Dexter allowed the sound on the boat's motor drown out his brother's remark. He needed to get back to Hannah with a late dinner and an explanation of the day's turn of events. There was much for them to discuss.

* * *

The Homicide division of Miami Metro was quiet. The fluorescent lights overhead were all out except for the one inside Lieutenant Morgan's office. Other than Debra, Sergeant Batista was the last officer to be calling it a night. He let out a sigh, turning off his desk lamp before putting on his signature fedora hat. Instead of heading for the elevator, Angel walked in the opposite direction toward the Lieutenant's office. He knocked softly before entering.

"Deb?"

There was Debra fast asleep. Her head lying in the sea of paperwork that littered her desktop like it was her pillow. Her name being called out through the silence did not even cause her to stir. She was out.

While Batista didn't like disturbing her, he didn't want to leave her sleeping in the office for the night. Quietly, he walked over to her and then gently gave her a nudge. The movement caused Morgan to awake abruptly. A printed out copy of her warrant for Arlene's cell phone records stuck to the side of her face when she lifted her head. She swatted it off before focusing her eyes on Sergeant Batista.

"Fuck me, what time is it?"

"About half past nine. You should call it a night. Vamos, I'll walk you to your car."

Debra brought her right hand up to her face to massage her forehead. She must have over indulged with her Xanax prescription yet again. The scary thing was that she had no recollection of even falling asleep. Her plan had been to stop by the court house immediately after work to have a judge sign off on the warrant. So much for getting that done today. She promised herself that she would make it a top priority tomorrow.

"Okay, let me just grab my stuff, I'll meet you at the elevator." She finally replied.

Angel nodded. Judging by the disheveled paperwork on her desk, he figured that she needed to put it all into some kind of order, maybe even packing it all into her work satchel. Debra was always known for taking her work home with her.

The first thing that Deb did when he left her office was grab her purse from the confines of the bottom desk draw. She let it plop in front of her, unzipping it with one quick motion She paused for a moment. Her eyes darted over to the top right draw. Reaching over, she slid it open. The orange clear cylinder bottle of Alprazolam snapped into her focus immediately.

What was she doing? She should just leave it in the office for the night. How many doses did she take that day? One or was it two, or maybe three. She couldn't remember. Debra shook her head and then forcefully closed the draw. She then began bunching all of the paperwork into unorganized stack that she then shoved into her nearby work satchel. Removing her cell phone from her purse, she checked for any notifications. There were none. So much for her big brother checking up on her. She hadn't seen him since the morning crime scene, and he clearly did not see the need to touch base with her. Deb thought about calling or texting him, but decided against it.

After muttering a single obscenity, she tossed her phone back into her purse. She thought that having Maria's blood on her hands would have made Dex open up to her more, since she did it to protect him. She had been wrong, in fact, he had become even more distant; preoccupied with his own agenda, whatever that was. She was being left in the dark.

Debra felt her chest tighten as a wave of sadness and disappointment flooded over her. She gave a few staggered breaths in an attempt to calm herself down so she didn't lose her composure. Batista was waiting for her at the elevator, she needed to get out there before he came back to check on her. Her brown eyes fell to the same draw she had closed only moments before.

"I fucking need it." She muttered to herself aloud as justification.

Deb threw the draw open and snatched her medication. With the bottle in her purse, she was ready to head out. At least she knew that she would be able to get some sleep tonight. A beer and a few pills would make sure of that. It was something that she could count on for comfort, unlike her selfish, serial killer brother.

Debra stared blackly at the closed metal doors as she stood in the elevator with Angel. She didn't want to look him in the eyes or even have small talk with him. Batista was a great guy. He always looked out for her like she was his little sister. This wasn't even the first time he had walked her to her car when she was pulling a late night at work. But that was before. Before Deb killed his ex-wife in cold blood. God, if he knew that she was the one responsible for Maria's murder. That thought was enough to make Debra take another Xanax right then and there in the elevator shaft. She wanted to get out of there. The time it took them to descend to the ground level of the police department felt like an eternity. And then finally, the bell chimed, and Morgan moved immediately to the exit like a race horse out of its gate.

"¿Cuál es tu prisa? Deb, slow down, don't make an old man hustle." Batista called after her as he too began to walk briskly.

Debra decreased her stride upon his request. Using her casted left hand, she swept a lock of her hair behind her ear.

"Sorry, I just want to get out of here. We sure as shit spend enough hours in this place as it is." She explained as the exited the building.

Both of their automobiles were parked in close proximity. Debra was still driving an issued unmarked police vehicle after her BMW was totaled thanks to Hannah's attempt on her life. Fucking Dexter should have to buy her a new Beemer. She loved that car. Dexter. Why was her mind constantly shifting to him? As she began driving the streets of Miami, she started to wonder where her brother was at that very moment. It was well into the evening so it would make sense that he was home with Harrison. Well, that was where he would be if he was a loving, responsible father.

As if on autopilot, she began driving in the direction of her brother's apartment complex. Shit, she didn't need an invitation to check in on him and Harrison. She was family. And just because Dex was being an ass, didn't mean that Harrison had to go without seeing his aunt. She didn't want to admit it to herself, but perhaps part of the reason she was going there unannounced was because she just didn't want to be alone.

Sooner than she expected, she was standing in front of apartment 10B. A few knocks on the door and it was Jamie who greeted her from the other side.

"Oh, Deb, hi." Jamie piped with a look of surprise on her face. The random visit from Dexter's sister was unexpected.

"Hey, I just stopped by to catch up with Dex. I was so busy I didn't get to see him today at the station." explained Morgan while cocked her head to the side to peer into the apartment behind the sitter for any sign of her brother.

"Oh, well Dexter is working late tonight. I don't know when he's coming home, but you're more than welcome to come in and wait for him."

"Fucking great..."

Jamie looked a bit confused as she moved from the doorway. Little did Dexter's nanny know, Deb was sure her brother was out committing a murder to pacify is own egotistical need. Of course, the needs of his family weren't a priority. She wasn't the only one being neglected, little Harrison was too.

Upon her entry, Morgan looked around the tidy main living area. There was no sign of her nephew, only his toy trains that were neatly lined up along the coffee table. On the same surface were a few lit candles. The lights were dimmed and the television was on but set to a low volume.

"Where's Harrison?" questioned Debra without even considering the obvious answer.

"He's asleep in his room. You can go in and check on him if you want. You don't have to worry about waking him up, he's a pretty sound sleeper."

Deb folded her arms in front of her before venturing to peek into her nephew's room. Despite the fact that she couldn't see herself having any children in the future, she loved spending time with Harrison.

There was a small glow in his room thanks to his sailboat nightlight on his bedside table. She crept in quietly and peered down at the sleeping child. Harrison looked so innocent and peaceful in his slumber; He knew nothing about his father's heinous deeds and Debra vowed to keep it that way. Dex had already destroyed so many lives, including hers, in the wake of his "dark passenger". She would do whatever it took to protect her nephew from that same fate.

When Deb went to fix his covers, his small red fire truck fell to the floor. She smiled and remembering how it and Thomas were his two favorite toys. She bent down and retrieved it. It was when she went to place the toy on the nightstand that her eyes focused on a picture of her brother and Hannah McKay.

"What the fuck?" She muttered silently.

In one quick motion she snapped up the framed photo. Due to the nightlight, she could clearly see both Dexter and Hannah's smiling faces as the posed together in what looked like Hannah's garden. Just the sight of her face made Debra want to smash the framed photo into a million pieces. She restrained herself from doing so, only because of her sleeping nephew. Why was this still in the house, let alone in Harrison's room?

Deb heard Jamie speaking out from the living room. She figured her brother had finally arrived home. And what perfect timing it was on his part, he had some explaining to do. With the picture still in her possession, she walked back into the living room to meet them. Much to her surprise, it wasn't Dex who had arrived, it was Joey Quinn.

"Sorry I'm a little late. I had a shit ton of paperwork after we had a break in a double homicide."

He leaned in and gave Jamie a quick kiss on the lips, completely oblivious to the fact that his ex-girlfriend and superior was standing only a few feet away.

"Are you kidding? You brought over Bacardi, all is forgiven." She giggle taking the brown paper bag from him that contained the booze for the evening.

Quinn chuckled before bringing his lips to her neck for a few quick kisses, but Jamie moved away from his advances when she noticed Debra standing there awkwardly like a third wheel.

"Oh Deb, I'm sorry. I invited Joey over tonight to hang out since Harrison is already in bed. Dexter knows and he's okay with it." apologized Jamie.

When Debra's presence was made known, Quinn immediately retreated from Jamie. His eyes were then focused intently on Morgan before he decided to speak up.

"Sorry, I didn't know you were gonna be here." Joey admitted sheepishly.

"It's fine. I just showed up looking for Dexter." Debra muttered before quickly shifting the topic to the framed picture that was still in her hand. "I found this in Harrison's room. What was it doing there?"

"Oh, that's suppose to be on Dexter's desk. Harrison loves looking at that picture. He really misses Hannah." Jamie explained reaching out for the picture, which Debra moved.

"This belongs in the fucking trash along with everything else having to do with Hannah McKay. Dexter and Harrison will get over her soon enough without shit like this in the apartment." Deb argued holding to frame up while she spoke.

"That's for Dexter to decide." Jamie answered back plainly before finally succeeding in gaining possession of the photo. She moved to place it back on its usual spot on her boss' desk.

Dex had already made his decision when he chose to give her the evidence to put Hannah away forever. It made no sense for him to keep anything from that poisonous relationship. He should be moving on, counting his blessings that neither her or Harrison were killed because he had been thinking with his dick.

Debra scoffed and was about to make a rebuttal, but quickly thought better. The fact that Jamie was Angel's little sister as well as Harrison's main caretaker kept Deb from flying off the handle like she was so used to doing. Besides, the young woman obviously had no idea who Hannah McKay really was. The girl was blindly putting her trust in what Dexter had told her about the situation with Hannah.

"I'll take it up with Dexter." muttered Deb.

Without saying another word, Morgan took her leave. She didn't even bother to acknowledge Jamie when she told her that she would let Dexter know that she had stopped by. It was completely unnecessary, because she was going to call him. As soon as she got into her car, she found his number from the contact list of her phone and hit the 'call' button.

* * *

Dexter stood motionless at the foot of the bed where Hannah was sleeping. She was lying just like he had left her when he came to remove the hefty bags from the motel room. And now he was back with a late dinner that he had already setup for her at the table. Brian stood by his brother's side, but was looking at his younger sibling instead of Hannah.

_Brian: "Are you just going to stand there and watch her sleep?"_

_"She's sleeping so peacefully. Even in this dimly lit room, she looks so radiant. It's almost as if she's glowing in the darkness."_

Brian let out a chuckle before he moved to take a seat in one of the hotel room chairs. He then commented back:

_Brian: "Well, you did knock her up. First Rita and now Hannah. I'm guess good ol' Harry and Doris Morgan never had the talk with you about protection. "_

The sound of Dexter's cell phone ringing brought him back from his imaginary dialogue with his brother. He quickly removed the phone from his pocket to view the caller. It was his sister. The noise caused Hannah stirred in her slumber. Dex quickly tapped the "ignore" button to send the call to voice mail before moving to the side of the bed. He sucked in a breath of air and held it while watching her eyes flutter open to meet his.

"Hey." Hannah whispered giving him a weak smile.

"Hey." He echoed in an exhale. His mouth pulled into a grin. "Brought you a late dinner."

"Thanks."

Hannah's eyes shifted and she turned in the direction of the room corner where he had left the hefty bags piled that were no longer there.

"I already took care of that while you were asleep." Dex commented, knowing right away what her question was going to be.

She let out a tired sigh and laid flat on her back, closing her eyes again. There was a moment of silence between them before Dexter spoke out again in a whisper.

"You were right." He admitted.

"About what?" She asked back, her eyes still closed.

Slowly, Dexter brought his hand to her flat stomach. He gently caressed her abdomen with his fingertips where their unborn child was growing. His touch caused her eyes to open and snap to his like they were guided by a magnetic force. Hannah smiled wide as her blue eyes began to glaze over with tears.

While it has her who had voiced the belief that she was pregnant, part of her wouldn't let herself believe it. It was some sort of self preservation. Not allowing herself to get excited about the possible pregnancy would ensure that she couldn't be devastated when she lost it. But after the blood test, Dex was telling her that this pregnancy was, indeed, real. She only hoped that this time would be different.

"Really?" She asked in a gasp like she was wanting him to say it out loud.

Hannah sat up. Leaning forward, she rested her forehead against his. And then, she cupped her hand over his giving it a loving squeeze that was followed by his verbal confirmation.

"We're pregnant." He breathed in an exhale.

She giggled with delight before pressing her lips to his. They both sighed in unison as she brought her hands to his face. The tender kiss lasted only a few seconds more until it was broken by Hannah. Her eyes cast away from his; her happiness being replaced with a sense of sadness.

"Are you okay?" Dex asked, sensing the sudden disconnect between them.

Hannah hesitated for a moment before turning her focus back to her lover who was waiting patiently for an explanation of her sudden change of emotion.

"So what happens now, Dexter? I can't hide in this shithole forever." She pointed out in a low voice that mirrored her feeling of hopelessness about the situation.

"You won't have to." He muttered back with a slight raise of his eyebrows before continuing. "I didn't just throw those hefty bags into the ocean tonight."

Her eyes narrowed. What was he talking about? She had no idea. Instead of asking, she allowed him to further explain.

"The aconite laced pen: The one piece of evidence that the police have on you. I took care of it."

Hannah's mouth fell open in response to his admission. Had Dexter really just gotten rid of the single piece of proof that she poisoned Sal Price? Did he really blatantly betray Debra and steal police evidence for her?

"So it's really gone?" She asked before biting softly on her lip.

"Just the cap, I replaced it. Any retesting of the pen for aconite will come back negative. I couldn't just make the pen disappear from evidence. If I did, Miami Metro would know that one of their own had taken it."

"Tampering with evidence, won't Deb suspect you? She wants me in prison more than anyone." Hannah commented, mentioning the obvious.

"Don't worry about Deb. Without tangible evidence against you, she's no longer a threat."

She raised her eyebrows and smirked and then replied to him.

"Seriously? What makes you think that will stop super cop Debra from coming after me, especially if she finds out that we're still together?"

"Because I won't let her." Dexter quickly retorted in a low voice.

On his face, Hannah saw a look of sincerity. She couldn't help but give a slight smile in response to his words. He was actually saying that he would protect her from his adoptive sister. If only he would have stepped in when Deb first starting threatening her with jail, so much could have been avoided.

"Deb will eventually realize that she no longer holds the moral high ground. Her hands are no longer clean, even if it is because of me." muttered Morgan when his eyes shifted away from his girlfriend's gaze.

Hannah's face contorted into a look of confusion. Dex had hinted that Debra was very stressed out over something besides her escaping from police custody the morning after they reunited. She wondered what the Lieutenant had done that would have knocked her off her self-righteous pedestal of justice.

"What are you not telling me?" She finally questioned in a whisper.

"Deb killed Captain Laguerta. Maria found out I was the Bay Harbor Butcher and had warrants for Deb and my cell phone records. I had an elaborate plan where I was going to lure Laguerta into the shipping container that I killed Estrada in and Debra just showed up with her gun drawn. Maria told her to shoot me, but she couldn't do it." divulged Dexter with a faraway look in his eyes.

McKay's jaw dropped before her lips slowly curled into a smile. The irony was almost poetic. The same cop who had stood before her in a court room and called her a liar and a killer ended up killing an fellow cop to protect her brother from the law. Debra Morgan really was a hypocrite.

"She shot the Captain? How did you get her out of that one?" chuckled Hannah as if what he had told her was joke.

"I made it look like Estrada and Laguerta killed each other in a struggle. The F.B.I is in charge of the case and they are already wrapping it up. I took care of all the loose ends that would possibly put Deb or me at the scene."

"And the Bay Harbor Butcher investigation?" She inquired.

"It died with Laguerta. I destroyed all of the evidence she had when I was erasing all ties to her murder."

"Wow, sounds like you always think of everything. It makes me wonder how you're going to help me beat a murder charge."

Dexter smiled menacingly before pulling Hannah into his arms so that she was now straddling his lap. He gave her a quick kiss before he spoke.

"Trust me, I have a plan. I would never have fixed the evidence if I didn't. Everything is in my control." He voiced with confidence before bringing his mouth to her neck.

Hannah grinned as a soft moan escaped her mouth when she felt his wet kisses traveling up along her neckline. His assertion then eliciting a hushed response from her:

"Of course it is. You're untouchable."

Her words caused his kisses to cease. He brought his hands up to her head, sweeping away her blonde locks of hair on either side of her face before responding.

"I am, and soon you will be too." Dex promised, flashing her a mischievous smirk.

Hannah mirrored his facial expression before bringing her hands to his collared shirt. Her fingers began to fiddle with the buttons. He remembered the fact that he had returned to the motel room with a late dinner for her.

"Don't you want to eat the food I brought you? A Cesar salad dinner is healthier than the fast food lunch." He offered, not forgetting about her delicate state. He looked down at his shirt as he watched her undo each button, starting with the top.

"That's not what I'm hungry for." She whispered back, making her eyebrows raise, while she continued to undo the clothing.

"It isn't? What did you want?" He asked, wondering if he should have woke her up and asked her when he had first arrived there that night. He was obviously oblivious to her sexual innuendo.

His response made her chuckle. Slowly, she slipped her hands down between their bodies and grabbed hold of him. Dex gasped under her touch, while Hannah brought her lips to his ear and breathed in a sultry whisper:

"I want you to fuck me."

And Dexter gave her what she wanted without the slightest hesitation. Their naked bodies entwined with heated passion that completely consumes the both of them. Unlike the night before, this time, their love making was gentle; without a struggle for dominance nor any blood.

It was after, that Dex shared his plan with his lover. Hannah listened intently as she laid in his arms. He was meticulous with his description of how she would need to set things into motion. Every facet of the plan had to be carried out exactly as he specified if it was going to work.

"You can't stay with me the rest of the night?" She asked with a hint of disappointment in her voice when Dexter left the bed and began to dress.

"I wish I could, but I need to get back to the apartment. I want to be there for Harrison in the morning."

Dexter mentioning his son made Hannah immediately smile broadly. She pulled the wrinkled covers up over her naked body and then spoke.

"Make sure you give him a hug and a kiss from me."

Dex nodded in agreement as he finished getting dressed. Before departing, he gave his girlfriend one final kiss and reminded her to stick to the plan that would begin with a phone call. It was on the drive back to Miami that Brian reappeared to him by sitting in the passenger seat.

_Brian: "Remind me why we're going back to your place at three in the morning when you could spent the rest of the night in bed screwing your hot blonde? She's got a great body, little brother, a perfectly symmetrical form, truly a work of art."_

Brian had been obsessed with the female form, more specifically the arms and legs. A psychologist would have speculated that it was witnessing a chainsaw tearing apart their mother that had made him a devotee to pieces of women.

_"Yes, she does, but I need to be there when Jamie and Harrison wake up."_

_Brian: "No, you don't. You have a nanny, that's what you pay her for."_

_"There's no sense in me trying to explain it to you. You never had kid, a family depending on you."_

_Brian: "You are my family, Dexter. I know that it's going to take you a while to stop behaving the way you think Harry Morgan would want you to. Getting rid of the evidence on Hannah was your first step. You have so much potential."_

Just like the night before, Dex successfully snuck into his apartment and completed his usual morning routine. He began cooking breakfast after sunrise and was just about finished its preparation when both Jamie and Harrison came into the kitchen.

"Dexter, wow, breakfast looks great." Jamie commended, before verbalizing her observation, "Another late night at work? I swear, you are the most dedicated blood spatter analysis in the history of the profession."

"What can I say? I love the job." Morgan commented back with a smile.

He then turned his attention to his son who he picked up and spun around in the air. Harrison laughed playfully, he loved it when his daddy played with him.

"I love you too, buddy." Dex added, bringing the three year old into an embrace that was followed by a kiss on the cheek.

Jamie offered to serve the food while Dexter got his son situated in his booster seat at the breakfast table. It was when they sat down to eat that Jamie spoke of Debra's unannounced visit the night before.

"Debra, stopped by last night looking for you. She seemed a little agitated, especially when she found out that you still have a picture of you and Hannah in the apartment. What's that all about?"

Dexter simply shrugged his shoulders before taking a sip of fresh squeezed orange juice. He wasn't about to explore the mutual hatred between Debra and Hannah with his son's nanny. The last thing he needed was someone else in his life being a part of the drama.

"I'll see Deb at work. Whatever's going on, I'll smooth it over."

"Speaking of work, is there any chance you could be home at a decent hour? I'd like to have the night off. Joey wants to take me out to dinner."

"Joey? As in Joseph Quinn?" He then asked narrowing his eyes.

"Yes, we started hanging out at the New Year's Eve party. Is that a problem?" She replied helping Harrison with his food.

"Uh, no, why would it be? I can be home early, that's no problem."

Dexter's cell phone alarmed causing him to reach for it.

"Crime scene, I've got to get going." He muttered after looking at the display. Dex gave his son a quick pat on the head before reaching across the table to snag a banana for the road.

* * *

_"A brutal crime scene first thing in the morning. Just another beautiful day in sunny Miami, Florida."_

Dexter was eating his pealed banana with one hand while holding his steering wheel with the other. Arriving at the blocked off highway entrance, he was forced to throw his breakfast aside to expose his Miami Metro laminate to one of the officers on the scene. The cop gave a nod before letting him drive down the cleared highway where the Miami Metro Homicide team was gathered.

Immediately, Dex observed that one of the Miami Metro squad cars was a part of the crime scene. As he approached, he saw that the victim was a male officer. Debra was standing next to the body with her arms folded. Rightfully so, she was clearly upset by the murder of a police officer.

"Hey Deb, do you know the story? Officer killed in active duty?" Dexter asked his sister when he approached her.

His inquiry caused her to turn toward him. Dexter's eyes met his own reflecting in her aviator shades. He waited patiently for a few seconds thinking she was going to give him information about the scene, but instead, Debra walked away from him in quite a huff. His narrowed eyes followed after her while he tried to figure out if he had said or done something to piss her off.

_"She must still be upset about finding the picture of Hannah last night. If something that small can have that effect on her, I can only imagine how she's going to react when my plan begins to unfold. Deb will probably end up wishing that she never got out of bed this morning."_

"She's upset like we all are. He was one of our own, Dex. Carlos Melendez, a upcoming officer who was assigned to highway patrol. This guy had two small children and a wife at home. Esto es desgarrador. We think he was murdered during a traffic stop that turned quickly turned ugly before he could call for backup." Batista informed Dexter as he approached him with Quinn at his side.

"It was a motorcyclist that he pulled over. At least that's what these black rubber marks on the road say." Masuka chimed in as he snapped a photograph of the road with a camera.

After setting his kit down and putting on his gloves, Dexter approached the victim and began to give a description of the bloody wounds he had sustained.

"The victim was cut across his abdomen. The location and angle of the laceration suggests that the perpetrator did so while he was sitting on the motorcycle. Dex began to scan its relationship to the tire marks that Vince had pointed out.

Morgan went over to the tire marks and bent his knees to mimic being seated on a motor cycle.

"Looks like Officer Melendez approached the biker from the left. He pulled a blade with his left hand and sliced into him with one quick motion. The blood pooling suggests that the victim fell to the ground immediately."

Dexter moved his arm in the air to reenact the motion the biker had taken when inflicting the wound to the officer. He then stepped back over to where the victim was laying.

"The pattern of blood from the tracks to where the body is shows that Melendez tried to pull himself away from his attacker."

"All this over being pulled over for a ticket? Once the cop was down, why would the guy come after him? Why wouldn't he just take off?" Joey asked.

"For whatever reason, he wanted to finish him off. The blunt force trauma to the victim's skull, and the subsequent cast off pattern show that the attack stood over him and repeatedly bludgeoned him with a weapon that had some weight. This was the cause of death, the cut was superficial." Dexter explained, then making the motions of the crime as he stood over the body. Masuka stood by him and continued snapping pictures of the scene.

"Weapon, like an issued metal flashlight? His is missing from his duty belt." Angel pointed out.

"That definitely could have been the murder weapon." Dexter replied with a nod.

"The fucking savage even busted the driver side window of the cruiser and stole the dash cam and smashed the mounted laptop. He then took the time to write the word 'PIG" in blood on the windshield." Quinn angrily retorted pointing in the direction of the squad car.

"Stealing the dash cam obviously made him brazen enough to leave a message; Possibly showing his disdain for law enforcement." commented Dex, before coming back with a question:

"Did any witnesses come forward? Somebody had to have seen something."

"Nada, it was called in anonymously and no one is stepping forward with any information. I'd be willing to bet that our perpetrator has gang affiliations." Batista speculated.

"If that's true, we can forget about anyone testifying as an eye witness." added Joey shaking his head with dismay.

"Let's wrap this shit up and head back to the station for the morning briefing. If we want to nail this mother fucker, we aren't going to do it standing around here. We've collected all of the evidence we're going to find here." commanded Lieutenant Morgan when she rejoined her team after standing on the sidelines since Dexter's arrival.

The team took the Lieutenant's direction without question, immediately beginning to pack it in. Dexter was quick to reassemble his kit, before hurrying from the crime scene to catch up with his sister.

"Deb, do you want to talk about it?" He offered when approached her just as she was getting in her car.

"No, I wanted to talk last night, but you obviously couldn't even take my phone call!" She retorted in anger, plopping down into the vehicle's driver seat.

"I'm sorry, I had my hands full last night, I should have returned your call, it's just-"

"Go fuck yourself, Dexter! I don't care what your excuse is! I've got a dead cop with no leads in sight. I need to focus on getting justice for one of our own! I don't have time for your bullshit!" Debra hollered, completely cutting her brother off before he could come up with some lame excuse as to why he had ignored her call.

Her rebuttal was quickly followed by her car door slamming shut. Dex stood there silently as the engine started and Debra drove off.

_"Deb's under stress. Like Harry, she takes the murder of a cop especially hard, maybe even more so because she knows that she was solely responsible for the death of one. I can only hope that the Melendez case can deter her focus away from Hannah."_

When the members of Miami Metro Homicide made it back to the station, they all gathered in the briefing room to go over the details of the Melendez case. Debra played her role as Lieutenant by leading the morning briefing.

"Looks like we have our first break in the case that comes from Carlos Melendez's wife. When we contacted her with the news of her husband's murder, she was quick to inform us that a member of the Aryan Brotherhood had made a threat against Melendez after he arrested him on domestic abuse charges a few months back."

"I'll look into the case records, come up with a name. I'd think we should bring him in for questioning." Quinn remarked.

"With what evidence? No hair, fiber, or fingerprints were left at the scene. All we know is that the perp was riding a motorcycle. Any idea how many bikers there are in the state of Florida?" Batista asked.

"Well we can't just do nothing, Angel. This guy's wife said that he was threatened by a white supremacist and guess what, most of those skin head fuckers are bikers. I'd hardly say that it's a coincidence." replied Deb, folding her arms in front of her.

Before any members of her team were able to respond to her annoyance, one of the department secretaries came in and whispered something to the Lieutenant. From his seat, Dexter focused intently on his sister. Her face quickly changed from a look of frustration to one of surprise.

_"And it's showtime."_

"I have to step out. Batista, you take over for me." She muttered before quickly hurrying from the conference room.

Deb quickly made her way back to her office with the secretary following closely behind her, letting her know that the call was on hold at her office phone.

"Lieutenant Morgan." She said into the receiver as soon as she took the call off hold.

"Good morning, Lieutenant, I'm Thomas McMullen attorney at law. I represent Ms. Hannah McKay."

"You know that your client is a fucking fugitive from justice, right?" Debra answered back before the lawyer had an opportunity to explain why he was contacting her at Miami Metro.

"I'm well aware of that, I am calling on behalf of Ms. McKay to strike a deal. She is willing to surrender herself if a single condition is met. Now I understand that this issue would have been taken up with the Captain, but I was informed that the position was currently vacant."

"Terms of surrender? Are you shitting me? Is this a fucking prank, because I'm not finding it funny." scoffed Debra as she shook her head.

"I assure you that my client and I are quite serious, Lieutenant. Ms. McKay only wishes to prove her innocence in the crime she was being accused of. Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't working out a deal to have a fugitive voluntarily surrender to you make your job all that easier? I'm sure you have other cases to invest your time in."

Morgan took a deep breath before sighing. The lawyer had to ask if she was still on the line before she spoke.

"All right, I'll bite. What does she want?"

"My client is requesting that an independent lab test the one piece of evidence that your department collected. That's all. I have this writing and I can fax it to you. It needs your signature."

"So let me get this straight, Hannah McKay is willing to turn herself in as long as the pen is re-tested by a laboratory outside of Miami Metro?"

"That's correct, Ms. McKay has made it clear that there is reason for her to question the validity of the results and it is due to a personal history with an employee of Miami Metro."

Debra's eyes rolled as she let out a chuckle. It was clear that Hannah believed that Miami Metro had tainted the testing on the Sal Price pen because of her breaking up with Dexter. Deb knew that it had been Masuka who had tested the pen for traces of aconite upon it being logged into evidence. She trusted Vince's forensic knowledge and precision with her life. There was no way that any other lab could find conflicting results. Hannah McKay was simply tired of running, and was now grasping at straws to find a way out. She had to know that she would be caught eventually.

"Fax over the paperwork. I'll sign it and agree to export to evidence to an independent lab for testing."

By the time Debra left her office, the morning briefing had concluded. Dexter knew what had beckoned her away from the briefing. He had decided it would be best to distance himself from the chain of events as much as possible to keep any suspicion of his involvement at bay. Unfortunately, Deb chose to approach him first with the news.

"Hannah's defense attorney contacted me. She wants to surrender."

Debra's words caught the attention of both Quinn and Batista who were within earshot at their desks. She was studying her brother's face after giving him the news that his ex-girlfriend was giving herself up. Deb wanted to gauge his reaction to see how much he still cared for her.

"Really? Just like that?" Dex asked, narrowing his eyes. He would have to do his best to play the part of the innocent party so that his sister wouldn't see right through him. Luckily, he had a lot of experience doing that.

"Well, with one condition, she wants the pen to be re-tested by an independent lab. Talk about a waste of time and resources, but if it's what takes to bring her in. Once we get her back into custody, there's nothing that can save her from going to prison for the rest of her life." Deb said with confidence.

"Hannah is turning herself in? Talk about making our jobs a lot easier, but why now? It just seems to come out of nowhere, doesn't it? We had no leads to find her, why wouldn't she just skip the country?" Angel asked aloud with a look of suspicion on his face.

_"Don't start questioning it, Angel. Chalk it up as a win for Miami Metro and move on. The last thing I need is for him to tip off Deb."_

"Unless she had connections to score a convincing fake passport, there is no way she could leave the country. She probably figured that if she turned herself in now, it would be seen as being cooperative to a judge who would be handing down sentencing. I'm sure her lawyer talked her into it." Joey hypothesized as he shrugged his shoulders.

"She has charges for first degree murder and escaping police custody, her ass is going to prison for life. This is a win for us. I signed and faxed the paperwork back to her lawyer. She'll be back behind bars before the day is over. In the meantime, let's work on finding out the identity of Carlos Melendez's killer."

As the officers of Miami Metro brought their focus back to the Melendez murder, Dexter began to calmly stroll back to his lab. On his face was a hint of a smirk.

_"Deb agreed to the terms of arrest. She thinks that she has Hannah exactly where she wants her. The problem is that Debra doesn't know that I tampered with the Sal Price pen. That's a secret that only Hannah and I share. I almost feel bad for my sister."_

When Dexter entered his confined laboratory, Brian was there waiting for him leaning against the his lab equipment.

_Brian: "Almost. It's like fish in the barrel, baby brother. It's all too easy. Once the independent lab comes back with a negative test for aconite, the D.A. will have no choice but to drop the murder charge. I can't wait to see the look on Debra's face. I wonder if it will compare to when she found out that, I, her loving fiancé, Rudy Cooper, was the Ice Truck Killer. She never saw it coming."_

_"Deb won't see this coming either."_

* * *

It was well into the afternoon when Hannah McKay arrived at Miami Metro with her lawyer. As soon as she stepped of the elevator, Dexter's eyes were immediately drawn to her through his lab window.

_"There she is, out of hiding."_

Hannah's lawyer stayed by her side as they made their way through the department. Debra had not yet been alerted of her arrival and was still in her office. It was Angel who stepped in to meet them.

"Ms. McKay, in case you didn't already know, I'm Sergeant Batista. I'll be in charge of booking you into police custody."

"No, the agreement was for my client to turn herself in only after we have the results of the independent lab test. We will be happy to wait until that time." McMullen interjected.

"Of course, I'm sure the results are on their way. We can have you wait in our cross examining room in the meantime. It's right this way."

"I've been there before, I know where it is." Hannah replied shooting a slight smirk in Batista direction.

In the room, Hannah and her lawyer sat on the same side of the table facing the door. Being a nice guy, Angel even offered both of them a beverage, which they both declined. It was when he was exiting the room, that he saw Debra coming toward him.

"Is she in there? The results should be on their way soon. I want to be in charge of booking her. I was the arresting officer, it's only right." Deb insisted. She was chomping at the bit to throw Hannah behind bars again.

"She is, her attorney is in there with her. Listen, I think you should let me handle this. You're clearly too emotionally involved in this case. Let me take it from here." Angel offered, trying to reason with his Lieutenant.

"Fuck no, her ass is mine!" She hollered back causing quite a stir in the department.

Masuka was seeing what was going on from his forensic station. He quickly moved to peek into the laboratory where he knew Dexter was still working.

"Dude, Hannah McKay just showed up with her lawyer looking smoking hot as ever. Your sister's about to go toe to toe with her in the cross examination room. It's probably going to turn into a cat fight."

"All the more reason for me to stay out of it, Vince. I care about Hannah, but I don't want to get in the way of Deb doing her job." replied Dex.

"Suit yourself, I'm getting front row seats for this chick fight. Huhuhuhuh."

Masuka then scurried to where a group of detectives were already huddled around the TV monitor. They had collectively decided to turn on the monitor the moment Deb entered the room with Hannah. However, much to their disappointment, Batista was quick to come over and shut it off.

"Lieutenant." Hannah muttered. A smirk had been plastered across her face the moment Debra entered the room.

Deb's brown eyes pierced like daggers in the direction of Hannah. Anger burned in the pit of her stomach when she saw how complacent McKay looked. She had remind herself that she was the Lieutenant of Homicide and, therefore, was not permitted to engage in an physical altercation with a woman she so deeply despised. Morgan took a seat directly across from her.

"You can wipe that fucking smirk off your face. The results from the lab will be here within the hour, and when it shows that you poisoned Sal, your ass is going right back to prison." commented Debra as she smiled wide at the thought.

"Excuse me, Lieutenant, but comments like that are unwarranted. My client has yet to be found guilty of any crime." The attorney advised.

"She did this to me," Deb added, holding up her casted hand, "so yeah, it is warranted. She tried to poison me, just like she did to Price."

Hannah's eyebrows raised. Her mouth pulled taunt into a full smile.

"I didn't poison Sal, and that independent lab test will prove it. You've been out to get me ever since you found out I was dating Dexter. Your lab made a mistake and in your Xanax induced stupor, you used those results to have me arrested." Hannah responded calmly with a grin.

"Bullshit, I know you're a fucking liar and a killer! You faked a seizure so you could escape jail because you knew-"

"Ma'am, I'm going to ask that you again to please calm down." McMullen interrupted before Deb could finish her rebuttal.

Hannah began to chuckle slightly. She couldn't believe that Deb was still point a finger and calling her a liar and a killer. If only she knew that Dexter had shared with her about Captain Laguerta's fate.

"Seriously, this again? You know, my grandma had another saying: 'the only thing worse than a liar is a liar that is also a hypocrite.' How long do you think you can hide behind that shiny Lieutenant badge, Debra?" asked Hannah, her eyes were narrowed and focused on Deb,

Her words caused Debra to freeze with her mouth parted. Her eyes darted away from McKay's icy stare. Hannah was echoing the same words she had said to her at the court house. This time, however, they were ringing all the more true.

Hannah could see that what she was saying was getting under Debra's skin. She reveled in the fact that she knew Lieutenant Morgan's deepest and darkest secret. Her and Dexter now held all the cards, and his adoptive sister was simply going to be along for the ride.

McKay had no problem lying for her survival. She had done it before when she had been arrested as a juvenile, and now, she was doing it again. She knew how to convincingly play the role of a victim.

"And just so you know, I didn't fake the seizure. It's documented with the hospital that I was brought into the emergency room unconscious. I woke up completely disoriented and I no recollection as to why I was tied to a hospital bed. I was so frightened, I didn't know who I was or where I was so I ran." Hannah explained starting to tear up.

She was giving an award winning performance that her defense attorney obviously was buying into as he handed her a tissue from his coat pocket. Debra, however, looked to be completely unmoved by McKay's display of emotion.

"That was a fucking Broadway worthy performance, I'll give you that, but, we both know that there was no seizure. You knew exactly what you were doing."

Before Hannah's attorney could speak out, the door opened and Batista asked Debra to step out to speak with him. Debra smiled, knowing that the interruption meant that the result had finally arrived. Quickly, Deb left her seat and met Detective Sergeant Batista outside of the room.

"Please tell me the results are in and I can take that bitch to booking."

Angel let out a sigh and paused. He really didn't want to be the one to be the bearer of bad news No one else in the department wanted to be the one to do it, so it had fallen on him. He lifted his fedora hat and wiped sweat from his receding hairline before putting it back on.

"Deb, the results came in. They were sent directly to the D.A. The independent lab's testing came back negative for poison. The word just came down, they are dropping the murder charge."

Deb was in shock. Nothing had mentally prepared her for this outcome, because it didn't make any sense. There was no way that Masuka's lab work could have been wrong. Miami Metro didn't make mistakes like this. Hannah McKay was guilty, she knew it in her gut.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me!" She shrieked when she finally found her voice.

"I'm not. And we will be lucky if Hannah doesn't decide to sue Miami Metro for our screw up."

"This is bullshit, Angel! She escaped police custody, how the fuck can they think that she's innocent?"

"Turns out Hannah's lawyer was able to get written testimony from a physician assistant who was on staff in the emergency room when they brought her in. This person verified the legitimacy of the seizure and the possibility of her being disoriented and having temporary amnesia. The District Attorney dropped those charges as well."

"Jesus motherfucking Christ!"

Lieutenant Morgan brought both hands up to her head, while letting out a frustrated sob. Her fingers clawed handfuls of her hair as she felt like the room was closing in around her. She couldn't believe that that bitch was going to get away with what she did. Where was the justice for Beverly Gray and Sal Price? And what about her? Hannah had tried to kill her too. One thing was for certain: the devil was taking care of his own.

After overhearing the news, Masuka decided that he needed to speak up. It was his forensic work that was being disputed and he taking it personally. Forensics, pornography, and tattooing, in that order, were his life.

"Shit, I've never made a mistake like this. She's going to sue me, I know it. It'll be because I'm Asian. I'm fucked worse than a prostitute in a donut shop." Vince commented aloud.

Dexter was silently watching the events unfolding in the department. He was purposefully continuing to make himself scarce from the scene.

_"The Miami Metro Homicide division is in a panic. They are trying to make sense of it all, but can't. I'm the puppet master pulling the strings as I create a new narrative for Hannah. But there are no strings tying me to the evidence tampering. I'm merely a shadow in the background, unseen, yet still present in the moment."_

Batista thought it was best that Debra keep her distance from Hannah. He instructed her to take a seat at his desk while he go back into the room to speak with Hannah and her attorney. Deb had agreed. She knew that there was no way she could control herself; self control had never been a tool in her skill set.

"Look at that fucking bitch She thinks she's untouchable; smiling because she knows she got away with murder." hissed Debra when Quinn to a seat on the edge of the desk next to her.

Hannah was grinning smugly as she walked out of the cross examiner's room with her lawyer. Dexter's plan had gone off without a hitch. She stopped for a moment, allowing her attorney to speak with the Sergeant while her eyes scanned the department floor for her lover. And then she saw him in the laboratory window. Their eyes met for a brief moment.

Lieutenant Morgan took note of the fact that McKay was looking in the direction of the forensics lab. Deb peered behind her and saw her brother.

"Oh fuck no..." Morgan breathed aloud before bringing her focus back to the other side of the room where McKay was standing.

The two women's eyes met causing Hannah's eyebrows to raise as if on cue. McMullen tapped on Hannah's shoulder as he voiced that it was time for them to depart. Hannah McKay was a free woman who could go back to her life like the ordeal never happened.

"See you around, Debra." McKay sneered before she retreated toward the elevator.

The snide remark set Deb off like a firecracker. She went to bolt from the chair, but Quinn moved fast to impede her from standing.

"Deb, don't, you're the Lieutenant. You can't make a scene." Joey reasoned getting down to her eye level as she seethed in the chair.

"Joey, either you get the hell out of my way or I'll punch you in the fucking throat!" She threatened through gritted teeth.

"Fortunately for us, Hannah's lawyer made it clear that she has no intention of suing Miami Metro Homicide nor any of its employees." Batista announced as he walked back to his desk with a happy Vince Masuka trailing behind him.

"If she wasn't already Dexter's squeeze, I'd totally French Hannah. She's the first woman who decided not to try and press charges against me. Huhuhuh."

"You've had chicks try to press charges against you? What for? Wait, forget it, I don't wanna know." Quinn commented, putting his hand up before Vince could respond.

Deb's mind was racing just as fast as her heart rate. Her thoughts kept dwelling on the pen. It had been stored in the Miami Metro evidence locker since Christmas day when her brother had given it to her. Other than Masuka testing it, that's where it had stayed.

"I'm going to go check the logs in the evidence locker." muttered Deb as she pushed by Joey so that she could get up and leave.

She walked away with a purpose, not waiting for a reply from any members of her team. Instead of using the elevator, Morgan raced down the four flights of stairs like they were nothing.

"I'd like the list of Miami Metro personnel who have visited within the last two weeks." Deb immediately told the cop behind the caged reception area.

"Here you are, Lieutenant Morgan, printed names and signatures with the time stamps." The officer said handing the clip board through an opening in the cage.

Without even a 'thank you', Debra began sifting through the various names and dates. It was three pages in that she knew that she had found what she was looking for. Dexter Morgan. Visited lock up yesterday.

Like a woman on a mission, Debra stormed back up the flights of stairs and went straight to the Homicide's forensics lab. She barged in without even pausing to knock. Her abrupt arrival caused Dex to turn and look at her.

"What the fuck were you doing in the evidence locker yesterday?" She hollered, getting right to the point with what she had just discovered.

"I had to go over the new evidence in the double homicide for my blood report that Masuka had already catalogued and stored down there."

Debra narrowed her eyes like she didn't believe a word he was telling her. Her reaction compelled Dex to add an alibi for his story.

"You don't believe me, ask Masuka. He was the one who told me about the new evidence and that I needed to examine it before I wrote the final spatter report. What the hell is going on, Deb?"

Dexter gave his very best 'concerned big brother' look while he pretended to be completely in the dark about what had transpired while he was in the lab.

"Hannah McKay just walked out of my department a free fucking woman! How in the hell does that happen, Dexter?"

_"Evidence tampering and story fabrication coming together seamlessly."_

"I don't know what you want me to say, Deb. I'm just as surprised as you are."Dex responded in a calm voice. His lie rolled right off his tongue with ease.

Debra's eyes narrowed. She folded her arms in front of her and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm herself down before she spoke again.

"Are you? You were the one that gave me that pen. You knew it was laced with aconite when it was taken in as evidence. The second test coming back negative can only mean one of two things: either the independent lab forged the results or that pen was tampered with while it was in our evidence locker, which you were in yesterday. Guess which theory I'm leaning toward."

Debra's eyes stared right into his when she spoke to him. The look on her face made it clear that she suspected that he was somehow responsible for the charges being thrown out.

"So I voluntarily gave you the pen as evidence to have Hannah arrested and brought up on murder charges and then I tampered with the evidence to get the case dismissed. Do you know how ridiculous that sounds?" Dex asked back with a chuckle, discounting her theory.

"Fuck me, I don't know anything anymore! I'm so losing my shit! I can't-"

Her voice cut off with a strangled cry. She began to sob as she brought both her hands up to cover her face. First one of Miami Metro's own had been found murdered and then Hannah McKay had slipped right through the cracks of justice. She didn't think the day could possibility get any worse.

"It's going to be fine, Deb. What you need to do is focus on the Melendez case. The guy was a good cop, and his killer needs to be brought to justice. You know that Dad would have insisted that the case would be top priority until it was solved. You need to make Dad proud."

Dexter knew exactly what he was doing by shifting the focus from Hannah onto the dead cop. Additionally, bringing Harry into the mix would only further cement the importance of the new case into his sister's mind. If Dex could keep her focused on her work, he could possibly delay the inevitable when his sister would find out that he was back with Hannah.

Mention of her father only caused Debra to get more emotional. Before Dex even had time to react, she pulled him into a hug. She held him tight while she bawled into his shoulder. Awkwardly, he brought his hands to her back and began to pat her in an attempt to provide her with some comfort. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Brian. His imaginary brother was repeatedly banging the back of his head against the wall he was leaning against.

_Brian: "This is painfully pathetic, Dexter."_

"Deb, I need to get back to work. I promised Jamie that I'd be home with Harrison at a decent hour because she's going out tonight." explained Dex as he pulled away from his sister.

His words caused her to take a step back. Her face was flushed, her eyes already puffy and red. She sucked air in before retorting with voice that was trembling with anger.

"Is everything always about you, Dex? Fuck!"

Dexter's jaw dropped in response to her sudden emotional shift. Her emotions seemed to be on a swinging pendulum; first she was screaming at him over Hannah McKay, then she was crying in his arms, and then she was back to cursing at him.

He didn't know what he should reply, but it turned out that he didn't have to say a word, because she stormed right out of the laboratory in the same manner she had entered it.

_Brian: "I can't believe I was even able to pretend to be in love with that woman. She's an emotional cripple and you're her crutch. You should have just told her the truth. She'll find out sooner or later. At least then you can stop putting on this elaborate charade."_

_"With everything that happened today, the dead cop, Hannah being set free, I don't think she could handle it."_

Brian rolled his eyes. He then walked over to where his little brother was standing and put an arm around him.

_Brian: "Who cares if she can handle it? You're not free if you're having to lie about who you really are."_

_"I care, she's still my sister, blood or not. She proved her loyalty to me in that cargo container on new year's eve. Explaining to her about why I helped Hannah now would only further upset her. She needs some time to cool down, then I'll sit her down and tell her everything."_

* * *

After her emotional blow up in front of her brother, Debra had sought sanctuary in the confines of her office. She kept telling herself over and over again that she needed to channel her thoughts to the details of the Melendez case. Unfortunately, her mind kept deviating to the release of Hannah McKay.

The fingers of her right hand began to tap repeatedly on her desk as she contemplated reaching in her desk draw for his Xanax prescription. A pill know would surely take the edge off and allow her to get back to work. Before she could move for the desk draw, a knock at her office door caused her to snap to.

"Come in." She said with a hint of nervousness to her voice while she tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear.

The door opened and Detective Quinn came through it with a cup of coffee in his hand.

"Hey, I thought you could use a little-pick-me-up. It's been a hell of a day." He explained with a smile as he handed her the cup.

"Yeah, no shit, thanks for the coffee." muttered Deb with a hint of a smile.

"You're welcome. And I've got some good news that might also help lift your spirits. We were able to I.D. the suspect who threatened Carlos Melendez by looking through his closed cases. His name is Angus Gibson and he has well known ties with the Aryan Brotherhood. We plan on bringing him in first thing tomorrow for questioning."

"Well, that's the best fucking news I heard all day. You should let Dexter know about the lead. If we have the profile of the suspect, he can cross reference it with the blood spatter analysis he collected at the crime scene."

"I would've, but he just let for the day. I filled Masuka in though."

Deb instinctively narrowed her eyes at the mention of her brother already leaving work. She hadn't left his lab more than a few minutes ago, and now he was already gone? Dex had mentioned to her to her that he was going home early to be with Harrison, but was the really the case? How many times had he used a convenient lie to conceal what he was really up to? Was this one of those instances? She could drive by his apartment, see if he was really there playing the role of good father to her nephew.

"Deb, you okay?"

Joey's voice brought her back to reality and she quickly answered back.

"Yeah, umm, just make you leave a copy of the that case on my desk before you leave for the day. I'm going to be taking off too."

* * *

Dexter had kept his promise to Jamie. After leaving Miami Metro, his first stop was home to pick up his son. The nanny seemed pleased that he was taking Harrison out of the apartment for some father-son time. She was already wanting to get dolled up for her evening with Joey.

"Daddy's taking you to see someone special." Dex informed his three year old, glancing back at him in the rear view mirror.

Harrison had not even asked where his father was taking him. He was, of course, unaware of what had transpired earlier in the day. All he would know was that Hannah had returned from her far away trip in order to be with him and Daddy.

The Ford Escape pulled up alongside the familiar pink and white house. To Dexter's surprise, Hannah was in the driveway unloading potted flowers from her van. She ceased her activity when her eye caught sight of his arrival.

_"When you truly love someone, you are willing to risk everything to be together; a career, the acceptance of those you care about, even your own freedom. Hannah and I took that risk together and it paid off."_

Hannah smiled when she saw Dex emerge from his SUV. She thinking about running to greet him, but froze when she saw that he was going in to one of the back passenger doors. As if on cue, her smile intensified when she saw him lift Harrison out of his seat and set him on the sidewalk. Dexter bent down to his son's eye level before giving him instruct.

"Look who's standing over there."

The blonde haired little boy peered in the direction his father's finger was pointing. Immediately, his face lit up when he saw Hannah.

"Hannah!" The child shrieked with excitement.

McKay slipped her gardening gloves into the back pocket of her jeans. She crouched down when she saw the three year old running full force toward her.

"Harrison! Hi, sweetheart, I missed you!"

Dex couldn't help but grin while he watched his son run into his girlfriend's arms. She pulled him into a loving embrace before lifting him off the ground and perching him on her hip. Once in her arms, Hannah showered him with kisses on both of his rosy cheeks.

_"I'd be lying if I said that I was keeping Hannah only for my own selfish need. The truth is that I did it for son as well. His attachment to her made it clear to me how much he wants her in his life. Rita would have wanted him to have a maternal figure besides a live-in nanny. "_

Dexter walked over to join his girlfriend and son. Upon approaching, he wrapped an arm around Hannah. His hand cupped the small of her back ushering both of them into his embrace. The couple's smiles mirrored one another before they kissed tenderly.

"Your plan worked perfectly." She commented once their kiss broke.

"I knew it would. Now you know that you don't have to try and solve every problem on your own. You can trust me to protect you. I love you." He muttered back as he brought a hand to her face to caress her.

"I know I can. I love you too." whispered Hannah bringing her forehead to his.

Dexter and Hannah were so engaged in their own little world that neither of them noticed Debra's unmarked police vehicle that was parked across the street a house or two down the road. Deb was just sitting there. Her eyes fixated on her brother and Hannah as her jaw trembled. Tears collected in the brims of her eyes. She blinked causing two watery trails to cascade down her face. Dexter had lied to her.


End file.
